The armed wing of Hamas published on Saturday a new video of one of the Israelis taken hostage on October 7, 2023 during the attack of the Palestinian Islamist movement in Israel from the Gaza Strip. The video, whose recording date cannot be verified, shows a young man speaking in English to US President-elect Donald Trump, and in Hebrew to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
He calls on Israelis to pressure the government for his release and that of all hostages still held captive in Gaza. The family of the young man, Edan Alexander, an Israeli-American, authorized the publication of the video. Hamas and Islamic Jihad, another Palestinian armed movement which participated in the October 7 attack, have already, in the past, broadcast videos of hostages.
“We can only bring back the hostages through an agreement”
“The shocking video of Edan, an Israeli-American citizen, is clear proof that despite the rumors, there are still hostages alive and suffering greatly,” said the Hostage Families Forum, a collective bringing together the majority of hostage families in Gaza. “A year after the first single agreement, it is clear to everyone: we can only bring back the hostages through an agreement,” adds the Forum in a press release.
Since the start of the war in Gaza, only one truce has come into effect, in November 2023, during which 105 hostages were released as part of an agreement which also allowed the release of 240 detained Palestinian prisoners. by Israel. Since then, seven hostages have been released by the Israeli army. Among the hostages, there are still foreigners, six Thais and a Nepalese, and several dual nationals. During the unprecedented attack by Hamas commandos on October 7, 2023, 251 people were kidnapped on Israeli soil. A total of 97 hostages remain in Gaza, 34 of whom were declared dead by the army.
Belgium
