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The families of several Israeli female soldiers abducted in a Hamas-led raid on October 7 have released a video of their abduction in an attempt to pressure the Israeli government to restore their captivity. stagnation Ceasefire talks could pave the way for the release of prisoners.
According to the Hostage and Missing Families Forum, which represents the families of Gaza hostages, the families first saw the video several weeks ago through the Israeli military, which formally provided them with a copy late Tuesday.
“I ask you, please play this video every day and start your broadcasts with it,” said Eli Albag, whose daughter Liri Albag in videoIn a television interview with Israel’s Channel 12, he said: “Until someone wakes up, the country wakes up and realizes that they have been abandoned there for 229 days.”
On Thursday, a day after the video was made public, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement that Israel’s wartime cabinet had ordered its negotiators to “continue negotiations to bring home the hostages held in Gaza.” But hopes for immediate progress appear slim in the shadow of Israel’s military operation in Rafah in southern Gaza, where more than 800,000 Palestinians have fled, according to the United Nations.
Some Israeli politicians immediately seized on the video on Wednesday to try to rebut the decision by Ireland, Norway and Spain unilateral recognition of the state of Palestine. Foreign Minister Israel Katz said he would play the video during a “severe rebuke” of the two ambassadors.
In a three-minute clip confirmed by The New York Times, Palestinian militants, some wearing Hamas headbands, can be seen tying the hands of five Israeli women in Nahal Oz. Oz) military base as a lookout. Gaza border. At least two hostages had blood on their faces and appeared to be wearing pajamas. Militants repeatedly threatened the women.
One militant called the women “dogs” and vowed to crush them. One of the women could be heard telling the militant that she “had a friend in Palestine,” while another woman asked if any of them could speak English.
Hamas said in a statement that the scenes in the edited video “cannot be confirmed.” The group also claimed that the translation provided by Israeli authorities was incorrect and contained phrases “that were not spoken by any of the militants featured in the video.”
Negotiations to secure the release of the more than 125 hostages still held in Gaza have been stalled since Israel began its assault on the southern city of Rafah in early May. Israeli forces operating in northern Gaza have recovered the bodies of four Israelis abducted on October 7, fueling concerns about remaining captives.
The Hostage and Missing Families Forum identified the Israeli hostages in the video as Naama Levy, Agam Berger, Liri Albag, Karina Ariev and Daniela Gilboa, all aged 19 or 20. The video was recorded by a body camera worn by the kidnappers’ Hamas militants. The group said they.
Families of the hostages met with senior Israeli leaders on Wednesday, including Defense Minister Yoav Galant and Benny Gantz, a member of the country’s wartime cabinet, in an attempt to lobby for an immediate deal with Hamas.
“This video is conclusive evidence of the state’s failure to bring home these hostages who were abandoned for 229 days,” the Hostage and Missing Families Forum said in a statement.
In a statement on social media, Gantz said he was shocked by the images of the five hostages being kidnapped and vowed to make “difficult decisions” if necessary to bring the remaining Gaza hostages home.
Knesset opposition leader Yair Lapid said the video “reminds the world that we are fighting evil in Gaza”.
Dmitriy Harvin, Alexander Cardea and Riley Mellen Contributed reporting.
