Hamas brought two more hostages to the hostage release site today, joining hostages Omer Wenkert, Omer Shem Tov, and Eliya Cohen, so that they could witness the cynical “release” ceremony. Matzav.com will not be showing the video.
The two additional hostages, Guy Gilboa-Dalal and Evyatar David, were identified during the ceremony. Both had been kidnapped from the Nova festival on October 7. After managing to reach their vehicle amidst clashes between police and terrorists, they found themselves trapped in the crossfire. They abandoned the vehicle and hid in the brush for over an hour until one of the terrorists found them. They were then tied up, blindfolded, and transported on a truck to Gaza via Be’eri.
After the video surfaced, Guy Gilboa-Dalal’s father spoke to Channel 12 News, saying: “This is the first time that I have seen my son in 16 months. This is the best sign of life I could have asked for, but on the other hand, there is nothing more cruel than this. This isn’t surprising, but it is a new level – to torture people like this. This only shows the urgent and great need to get them out of there.”
In response to the cruel video released on Saturday night by Hamas, Yaela David, Evyatar David’s sister, wrote: “They are alive, they put them both this morning in the most horrific and bad situation that they could be [in]. There is no end to the stupid cynicism of these animals. I admire you, my brothers.”
The Families Forum reacted to the video by stating, “Sixty-three hostages are held by these sons of evil for 505 days already. Other than the inhumane physical conditions of the captivity, as shown by the returnees’ testimonies, the hostages are experiencing severe and cruel mental torture. They are out of time! The Israeli government and the person leading it must speed up the negotiations and bring the rest of the hostages home immediately – without delays and not in small groups.”
Saturday’s release marked the final release of living hostages in the first stage of the deal. Four more deceased hostages are expected to be released on Thursday, bringing an end to this phase. Once completed, 59 hostages will still remain in Gaza, with 35 of them declared deceased.
The hostages released on Saturday morning included Omer Shem Tov, Omer Wenkert, Eliya Cohen, and Tal Shoham, all of whom were kidnapped during the October 7 massacre. They were freed alongside Hisham al-Sayed and Avera Mengistu, who had been held in Gaza for nearly a decade and just over a decade, respectively. The four hostages taken during the massacre endured torture, starvation, and psychological abuse for 16 months. They lost a significant amount of weight and were kept in tunnels throughout various parts of Gaza. During their captivity, all four hostages learned Arabic.
Omer Wenkert, who had been kept from media exposure, discovered only after his release that his girlfriend, Kim Damati, who had been with him at the Nova festival in Re’im, was killed during the massacre. Wenkert had lost 30 kilograms during his captivity. Omer Shem Tov was held in a tunnel, spending much of his time alone. Although he had minimal media exposure, he was aware of the public rallies calling for his release. “It strengthened me and gave me hope that I would be released in the end,” he shared.
Eliya Cohen spent much of his captivity isolated, away from media attention. He was only made aware today that his partner, Ziv, had survived the massacre and was still alive. He also revealed that he had only recently been allowed outside and exposed to daylight.
Avera Mengistu, held since 2014, returned in very poor health and had difficulty communicating. His family is now by his side, offering support. Hisham al-Sayed, who had been held since 2015, returned in better condition than anticipated by defense officials, despite previously being seen on video wearing an oxygen mask.
{Matzav.com Israel}