Boehler also sometimes refers to the (mostly civilian) Israeli hostages — who were abducted by Hamas and other terrorist groups during the Hamas-led massacre, in southern Israel on October 7, 2023 and whose release he has been charged with helping to expedite — as prisoners.
“I think there is a deal where they can get all of the prisoners out, not just the Americans,” he told CNN for instance.
The purpose of his direct talks with Hamas, he told Israel’s Channel 12 a few hours later, “was to lead and to really enter into broader talks on all of the prisoners because the President made very clear that we’re focused on not just Americans here, American-Israelis, but Israelis overall…”
Many of us make little errors of language when we speak, but those two words “hostages” and “prisoners” are among the basic building blocks of his actual job. You’d think he’d know and take care to keep track of the difference between the two.
Not incidentally, Boehler on Sunday also twice misnamed the only living hostage with American citizenship, Edan Alexander, referring to him as “Adi.” (That’s Edan’s father’s name.)
