The daughter of an Israeli hostage held in Gaza has said that a deal to release all the captives might not happen soon, after meeting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, AFP reports.

“I left with a heavy and difficult feeling that this (ceasefire deal) isn’t going to happen soon, and I fear for my father’s life, for the girls who are there, and for everyone,” said Ella Ben Ami in a statement released by campaign group the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.

Ella’s father Ohad Ben Ami, 55, has been held in the Gaza Strip since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7. Her mother, Raz Ben Ami, was also kidnapped during the attack but was later released during a week-long truce in November.

Ella Ben Ami and a group of other family members whose loved ones are being held hostage in Gaza met Netanyahu to urge him to strike a deal that would secure the hostages’ release.

“We must bring about the deal, and if what I say here causes the prime minister to fight harder, that’s what needs to happen,” Ben Ami said. “He needs to be 200 per cent in this struggle because these are his citizens, and it’s his duty to bring them home.”