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Candles for the missing: “We call on all decision-makers: Bring this family home”
Photo: David Silverman / Getty Images
The family of the latest Israeli hostages still held in the Gaza Strip have called for a quick release agreement with Hamas. The Israeli army released a previously unknown video on Monday evening in which the mother was seen with her two sons - baby Kfir and four-year-old Ariel - in the hands of the kidnappers in the Gaza Strip shortly after her abduction on October 7th. The fate of the two red-haired children attracted worldwide attention immediately after their abduction through another video. The father was also kidnapped.
The terrorist organization Hamas announced last year that the mother and two children had been killed in Israeli air strikes. However, a similar report about another hostage later turned out to be false. The army has not yet released a death notice, but army spokesman Daniel Hagari said when the new video was released that he was "very concerned" about the family.
The boys' aunt said on Tuesday: "When we saw the video, it was as if our hearts were being ripped out." There was "no other way than a negotiated solution" to release the hostages, she said in an interview with journalists. The military operation in the Gaza Strip is another element, but could not bring about the solution. "They are the only children who are still among the hostages," she said through tears. "We call on all decision-makers: Bring this family home."
The kidnapped father's cousin said time was running out and they didn't want to bury three generations of a family. The boys' grandparents were brutally murdered on October 7th. Now you have to save the parents and children. The family appealed to the world to help. "These two little red-haired boys have entered the hearts of many people," said another relative.
During the massacre in Israel on October 7, terrorists from Hamas and other extremist groups also abducted 250 people to the Gaza Strip. Around 105 hostages were released as part of a prisoner exchange in November. According to Israeli information, at most around 100 of the remaining hostages are still alive.
eru/dpa