Protestors gathered in Tel Aviv’s “Hostage Square” on Saturday to stage an emergency protest following the release of propaganda videos showing emaciated Israeli hostages still held in Gaza.
Videos released by militant groups Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad this week showed Israeli hostages Evyatar David and Rom Braslavski in a visibly fragile state. The undated footage of David is juxtaposed with images of starving Palestinian children.
They are among fifty hostages that remain in the territory, at least 20 of whom are believed to be alive.
The militant groups released the videos with ceasefire talks stalled and Palestinians face a mounting starvation crisis in the enclave.
Steve Witkoff, the United States’ special envoy to the Middle East, attended the public plaza on Saturday amid the protests, one day after he visited a controversial US-backed aid distribution site in the Gaza Strip.
“Against the backdrop of horrifying footage and harsh reports about the hostages’ condition – hostage families will cry out this morning in the heart of Tel Aviv,” a statement from Israel’s hostage families said. “We appeal to the Israeli government and the US administration – look our loved ones – and us – in the eyes.”
A poster outside the Tel Aviv Museum of Art showing hostage Evyatar David, photo taken on January 21. – AFP/Getty Images
A poster outside the Tel Aviv Museum of Art showing hostage Rom Braslavski, photo taken on January 21. – AFP/Getty Images
The hostage families – who have frequently said that ongoing fighting in Gaza endangers their loved ones – called for an end to the war in the territory and a “comprehensive deal” that would see the remaining hostages freed.
Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said on Friday that fighting will continue “without rest” in Gaza if there is no hostage deal.
“I estimate that in the coming days we will know whether we will succeed in reaching a partial deal for the release of our captives. If not, the fighting will continue without rest,” he said.
‘He has simply been forgotten there’
On Friday, the armed wing of Hamas released an undated video showing 24-year-old David – who was taken hostage at the Nova music festival on October 7, 2023 – being held in a narrow cell.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters cautioned against using imagery from the video “until the family has given explicit approval.”
The video was released one day after a similar propaganda video was published by Palestinian Islamic Jihad showing Braslavski also in a frail state. Islamic Jihad said it was the last video taken of the hostage before the group lost contact in July with the militants holding him.
“People talk a lot about what is happening in Gaza, about hunger, and I want to ask everyone who spoke about hunger: Did you see our Rom? He is not receiving food, he is not receiving medicine. He has simply been forgotten there,” Braslavski’s family said in a statement.
“We ask that Witkoff see this video. And we make an urgent plea to President Trump: Bring our son home,” the family said.
Earlier this week, a UN-backed food security agency warned that “the worst case scenario of famine” is unfolding in Gaza, its starkest alert yet as Israel faces growing international pressure to allow more food into the territory.
Gaza’s health ministry said Saturday that seven people had died from malnutrition in the past 24 hours, including one child, bringing the total death toll from starvation since the conflict began in 2023 to 169.
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