‘Glimmer of hope’: Cousin of Needham man on list of hostages to be released in ceasefire deal

NEEDHAM, Mass. — The cousin of a Needham man is on the list of hostages to be released now that a cease-fire deal has been reached.

“My emotions ran dry on this a long time ago, today’s the first day I felt any glimmer of hope in a very long time,” said Jason Greenberg, who lives in Needham.

Greenberg finally feels a sense of hope after learning about the cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas.

Five of his family members were taken hostage on October 7th when the war broke out, and two of them were killed.

“They have waged psychological as well as physical terror on not only the direct victims but the indirect victims such as families, so I’m not surprised it’s taken this long and honestly I still won’t believe it until I see the faces come home,” said Greenberg.

Greenberg’s cousin, Ofer Kalderon, and his two children were taken hostage that day, and about two months later, the children were released in the first exchange, but their father is still held captive 15 months later.

“One thing they both keep saying is they can’t really move on until they get their dad back,” said Greenberg.

Greenberg says his cousin is on the list of 33 hostages to be released now that a deal has been reached, according to President Biden’s announcement Wednesday.

“It’s a mathematical impossibility that he’ll come back the same person he was when he left,” said Greenberg.

Along with being a dad, Ofer is a carpenter and an adventure cyclist who loves to travel the world.

“My only hope for him is that he gets to build a kitchen in the next year or two and go to some exotic place and ride with his friends and do the things that he loved to do before,” said Greenberg.

Greenberg is now just hoping this deal is official, so families, like his, can finally be reunited.

“Alive or dead they have to come home, and closure has to take place and that’s the only way this war’s gonna end,” said Greenberg.

The hostages are supposed to be released in phases starting on Sunday, and Greenberg says his cousin is listed to be released in the third group of four.

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