Local residents watching ceasefire negotiations, hoping for peace
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Dafna Ofer has been keeping a close eye on the news and anything that's related to ceasefire and hostage return negotiations between Israel and Hamas.
It's because she's not only helping to run an organization advocating for the return of hostages but she was also born and raised in Israel and has family there.
"I have three daughters in Israel now so my heart is in Israel," she said.
READ MORE: Israel and Hamas reach ceasefire and hostage release deal
Amna Alsutan is also keeping a close eye on ceasefire negotiations. It's because she fled Palestine last year as war ravaged her hometown.
"All my family and my husband is there so I want them to be safe," she said.
Both women are hoping for the same thing: an end to the war in Gaza. That hope got a boost with news of ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas.
"If you go to Gaza and ask everyone, they would feel that this is a dream looking for a ceasefire," said Alsutan of the news of a possible ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which would open the door for desperately needed resources in Gaza as Israeli hostages are returned in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
SEE ALSO: How Philadelphia area is reacting to Israel-Hamas ceasefire: 'Cautiously optimistic'
"(I have) very mixed feelings," said Ofer. "Until I see the first hostage at home, I won't allow myself to believe that."
She's cautiously optimistic because she's been disappointed by stalled hostage negotiations before.
"It's a terrorist organization we're making a deal with. And any minute the deal can either break apart," she said.
Action News last talked to Ofer in the summer as she continued her work with Hostage Family Forum of Philadelphia. She displays photos of the hostages in her home as a reminder of the ongoing fight to free them.
"(I) make sure to keep them in my mind," she said while looking at the photos, which include the picture of one hostage who was killed and is a friend of her daughter.
Alsultan's constant reminder of what the war has done to her life can be found in the faces of her children. Action News first spoke with the mother of four in September as her two middle children, who were injured in bombings, were brought to Philadelphia for treatment.
Her youngest child, who was just three weeks old, died as a result of the war when a hospital in Gaza was unable to care for him.
READ MORE: Who are the American hostages being released in the Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal?
"There is no food. There is no hospital. There is no shelter," said Alsutan.
She too is hopeful for a ceasefire as her family says bombings continued through Thursday.
"We are peaceful. We don't want war," said Alsutan, who one day hopes to have the option to return home if there's anything left to return to. She's grateful for the care her children have gotten in Philadelphia.
Ofer, meanwhile, is organizing an event this weekend in honor of the youngest hostage being held by Hamas. She's cautiously hopeful that the event could be part celebratory if the child is among the released hostages. She says she'll continue her work until all hostages are released. She knows, though, that a lot hinges on the fragile negotiations between Israel and Hamas.
"You just feel, you know, helpless," she said.
