First Lady Melania Trump welcomed freed Israeli hostages Aviva and Keith Siegel to the White House on Wednesday, one year after Aviva met the first lady for the first time and pleaded for help securing her husband’s release. 

In the meeting in early 2025, Aviva gave the first lady books that she had written about Keith, who grew up in North Carolina. Trump then passed those books to the president, the first lady shared on Wednesday. 

“I gave him the books, the books that Aviva gave me, and I explained the situation — where she thought that Keith was, how he was doing. She didn’t have much information, but she knew how much he was suffering, because she was with him for 50 days,” said Trump. “I explained to him everything, and I know how hard he was working.” 

The Siegel couple was kidnapped by Hamas terrorists from Kibbutz Kfar Aza on Oct. 7, 2023. Aviva was held hostage for 51 days before being released in the first ceasefire deal in November 2023, but Keith was not released until 2025, after 484 days of captivity. Over the course of the war, Aviva became one of the most visible activists advocating for the release of all the hostages. 

“Aviva is a warrior. She’s a warrior. She was fighting very hard for Keith, and I know he suffered a lot,” Trump said on Wednesday. “I’m happy to see you healthy at home with your children, with your grandchildren, with your family, and I know you’re giving back your time, your energy, to other people.”

Keith responded to the first lady’s remarks with emotional comments of his own, getting choked up at times. 

“I want to thank you for being a very compassionate person, for supporting and helping Aviva during those difficult days, and you helped her enormously in many ways,” Keith said to Trump. “I’m eternally grateful to you and President Trump for bringing me home and for bringing all of the hostages back to their families.”

The first lady said the meeting was planned to coincide with the Siegels’ travel schedule in Washington. But she also used the event to tout her new documentary, “Melania,” which the first lady said includes footage of her meeting with Aviva. 

According to the White House, text displayed at the end of the documentary lists Trump’s accomplishments as first lady, including: “Melania Trump played a key role in securing the release of Keith Siegel after 484 days as a hostage in Gaza, just 12 days after the inauguration.”