TAMPA, Fla. (WFTS) — The long-awaited release of hostages from Gaza after two years of negotiations has drawn global attention and emotional reactions: from relief among families to renewed debate about what comes next in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
For Hassan Shibly, founder and lead attorney with Muslim Legal based in Tampa, the moment was both a relief and a grim reminder of what he calls “two years too late.”
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“Thank God, two years later, after Hamas initially offered to release all of the hostages on the condition that Israel stop bombing Gaza, the Netanyahu government finally complied, thanks to pressure by President Trump,” Shibly said. “However, in our opinion, it was too little, too late. The hostages should have been released two years ago.”
Shibly said that while the hostage release offers some hope, it’s overshadowed by what he describes as “unimaginable loss” for Palestinians in Gaza.
“Our hearts also grieve for the many Palestinians that continue to be killed,” he said. “Only yesterday, Sadeh al-Jafraui, a well-known journalist in Gaza, was killed by Israeli-backed gangs. We just need the violence to stop. We all have to value all human life as equal. Whether it’s Palestinian, Jewish, or Israeli.”
Shibly believes the latest developments could mark the beginning of a shift in public opinion both internationally and here in the U.S.
“If you look at the images coming out of Gaza right now, the entire city’s been flattened," he said. "Almost two million people displaced, hundreds of thousands killed,” he said. “But I think many Americans are now saying, ‘Enough. Not in our name. Not with our tax dollars.’”
He linked the growing disapproval of U.S. military support abroad to what he calls an “America First” sentiment.
“Let’s keep American tax dollars at home. Let’s stop giving other countries our weapons to cause violence and implicate us,” he said.
Shibly emphasized that the United States’ influence over the situation cannot be overstated.
“For years, there have been attempts at the United Nations to demand a ceasefire, and America kept vetoing it,” he said. “We hear American presidents on hot mics expressing frustration with Netanyahu, but they keep arming and funding the Israeli military. We can’t be a peacemaker while we fund war.”
As a Muslim-American attorney and activist, Shibly said he views this as a moment of moral responsibility.
“I believe in America first,” he said. “If we keep our tax dollars at home, that will promote peace around the world.”
International security expert Arman Mahmudion, a research fellow at the University of South Florida Global and National Security Institute, described the hostage deal as a “great achievement,” but one that still hangs in fragile balance.
“The war in Gaza is unique. A state versus a non-state actor,” Mahmudion said. “We witnessed asymmetrical warfare, civilian casualties, and the use of human shields. The fact that hostages have been released according to the agreed schedule is a good sign. But this is not a done deal.”
He said the upcoming days would be critical as Hamas faces pressure to disarm and as Israel weighs its next steps.
“Hamas said it will hand over weapons to an Arab coalition of Egyptian and Palestinian forces,” Mahmudion explained. “The question is what’s the guarantee? Some Hamas units are already resurfacing. So, it’s too soon to celebrate.”
Mahmudion credited President Trump’s direct involvement with creating the diplomatic opening.
“It seems President Trump personally threatened to walk away from Netanyahu if Israel didn’t comply,” he said. “That pressure made the deal possible.”
Still, he warned, the situation remains delicate: “There are positive signs, but the future depends on whether both parties, Hamas and Israel, fulfill their promises.”
While political figures debate peace prospects, some families are still living in anguish. We revisited Jonathan Dekel-Chen last week.
Jonathan Dekel-Chen, a Sarasota resident and father of a hostage freed in February, spoke candidly about his family’s ordeal. His son Sagui, an Israeli-American, was held in Gaza for nearly five months before being released in February.
“We’re unspeakably grateful that Sagui came back to us after nearly 500 days of captivity in Hamas hellholes in Gaza,” Dekel-Chen said. “He came back wounded, certainly in body, but he’s doing as well as a person can under the circumstances.”
To Dekel-Chen, rebuilding Gaza is a large part of the peace equation.
“Because right now, the people of Gaza have nothing left to lose. They’re pretty much lost everything,” he said.
But, to Dekel-Chen, ensuring long-standing peace will require more than reconstruction and the release of the remaining Israeli hostages. He said each side of the conflict will have to find humanity in the other side to stop the cycle of hate and conflict.
“How do we defuse that?” he asked.
Dekel-Chen praised international pressure but said the world must stay engaged.
“President Trump has made it clear what he expects from both sides,” he said. “Arab countries and Turkey are committed to getting a ceasefire done, and a day-after plan for Gaza to rebuild. Those two million Palestinians have suffered immensely. They are almost as much hostages to Hamas as our 48 remaining Israeli hostages.”
Despite years of suffering, Shibly said he’s found encouragement in unity at home, especially among interfaith communities in Tampa.
“At many of our protests, we’ve seen Jewish friends standing with us,” he said. “They don’t see this as a Muslim-Jewish conflict. It’s about power and justice. And many Jewish allies are saying, ‘Not in our name.’ That solidarity gives me hope.”
For Shibly, peace will only come when equality is the foundation.
“There can only be peace when there are equal rights for all people, regardless of race or religion,” he said. “We as Americans have to lead by example and demand that our tax dollars fund peace, not persecution.”
Mahmudion cautioned that while the hostage release marks progress, “it’s only a step.”
“If by the end of the week both sides fulfill their promises, hostages, prisoners, disarmament, then we will have a foundation for broader de-escalation,” he said. “But if either side breaks faith, trust in U.S. mediation could collapse and things could get worse.”
Both men, though from vastly different perspectives, agree that the eyes of the world remain on Gaza, waiting to see if this fragile ceasefire becomes a lasting peace.
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