Ronen Tzur, former leader of hostages forum, considers running in next election

Ronen Tzur, former head of the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, will consider joining a political party in the next election, Tzur said to The Jerusalem Post in an interview on Monday.

“I do not rule out the possibility of running as part of a list that will lead to a change of discourse and a connection between the conservative and liberal publics, which instead of fighting each other will lead to a connection that will prevent national destruction,” Tzur said.

The interview will be published in full in Friday's Frontlines section.

Tzur, 54, is a veteran media consultant known for his aggressive tactics. During the early stages of his career, he worked for many figures in the Labor Party, and in 2006, he briefly served as a member of Knesset for Labor. Over the years, his company, Tzur Tikshoret (Tzur Communications), advised and campaigned on behalf of a wide array of large corporations, companies, and individuals, some of them controversial, including former president Moshe Katzav, who was eventually convicted of rape.

Tzur was hired to run the campaign for Benny Gantz’s Blue and White Party when it first ran in 2019. He also participated in the 2023 protests against the government’s judicial reforms.

Former head of the Hostages and Missing Families Forum

Tzur led the Hostages and Missing Families Forum voluntarily from its formation until he resigned on February 18. Kan News reported at the time that 45 families had requested his ouster. In a statement on X at the time explaining the decision, he wrote, "At the meeting of the families of the hostages that took place this morning, the families expressed grave concern about the reactions of political parties in the coalition to my involvement in the management of the forum.

“Evidence was presented at the meeting that some of the families received threats during their visits to the Knesset and during meetings with coalition members, who provided their assistance to the families of the hostages in changing the composition of the forum leader.

“In this difficult and painful moment for the families, I do not intend to allow any political party to directly or implicitly threaten the families of the hostages and make them victims of unscrupulous political parties.

“It was decided by full agreement that from now on, a team of families selected by them will lead the activities of the headquarters, and the volunteer team will advise the families,” he concluded in his post on X.

Tzur announced that he is considering running for public office after former Meretz MK Yair Golan declared his run for leadership of the Labor Party and after current Labor MKs Gilad Kariv and Naama Lazimi endorsed Golan earlier this week. Tzur’s announcement also came a week after Minister-without-Portfolio Gideon Sa’ar broke away from Gantz’s National Unity Party last week to operate independently under the name”New Hope – The United Right.”