Kathy Manning: “I thank my dear friend, Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, and all she has done in this time of such tragedy for…”

“I thank my dear friend, Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, and all she has done in this time of such tragedy for the Jewish people. Mr. Speaker, on October 7, Hamas terrorists invaded Israel by land, air, and sea. They slaughtered over 1,200 innocent civilians, brutalized and raped women and girls, and took more than 240 hostages, including infants, children, the elderly, and even Holocaust survivors. After long negotiations, many of those hostages were released with devastating trauma, weight loss, and emotional and physical injuries. That is why I am so worried about the remaining hostages. It has been over 100 days of mourning, of pain, and uncertainty. For more than 100 days these people have been trapped in despicable underground tunnels with no fresh air, no sunlight, little water, little food, no comforts, and certainly no medical care. Knowing all this is simply unbearable for the hostage families. I have been meeting with the families of the hostages for months, and their stories have been heartbreaking. Their stories have haunted all of us. Today, I want to share the story of Carmel Gat and her family. Carmel Gat is a 39-year-old occupational therapist who lived in Tel Aviv. She was visiting her parents at Kibbutz Be'eri when Hamas attacked. First, they killed her mother, Kinneret. Then they grabbed Carmel and carted her away.…”