The Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, released a video Monday showing two Israeli hostages appealing for their lives. They warned that the renewed Israeli bombardment on Gaza could kill them. The video, titled “Tell Them, Ohad,” shows the captives discussing their worsening mental, physical, and security conditions. They called on fellow detainees released earlier in a prisoner exchange to speak out about the ordeal.
One of the hostages, identified only as Prisoner 21, said he “saw death” before his eyes after Israel resumed its military campaign on March 18. “These attacks will lead to our end,” he warned. “We are the ones who asked and begged (our captors) to be heard.”
He described severe shortages in food, water, and medical supplies following Israel’s closure of aid crossings in early March. However, he emphasized that during the ceasefire period in January, “Hamas fighters were keen to provide everything we needed… not just to feed us, but to make us feel well.”
“We believed this would end,” he added, referring to the sense of hope before the attacks resumed.
Israel’s surprise aerial assault on Gaza on March 18 killed at least 730 Palestinians and injured nearly 1,200, violating a ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal that had been in effect since January 19.
Silenced Voices: Hostage Pleads for Testimony
A second hostage, referred to as Prisoner 22, directed his appeal to those who were freed during the January truce. He urged them to speak out about the conditions they endured in captivity. “Enough with this government silencing our voices. Let the truth come to light,” he said. “The released prisoners who were with us must go out and talk about our conditions. Let them speak.”
He specifically called on Ohad, a released Israeli hostage, to share his personal experience. “You know how much suffering we are going through here,” the hostage said. “Explain to them how hard it is for me to stay here every day without my son and without my wife.”
These public testimonies challenge Israel’s narrative and highlight an internal demand for transparency from the hostages themselves.
Read: US Defends Israel, Calls Hamas the Real Threat
Ongoing Genocide and War Crimes Charges
Since October 2023, Israel’s military onslaught on Gaza has killed over 50,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, and injured more than 113,200, according to health officials in Gaza. The humanitarian crisis has deepened amid food blockades, destruction of hospitals and schools, and constant airstrikes.
While 59 Israeli hostages are believed to remain in Gaza—24 reportedly alive—more than 9,500 Palestinians are currently held in Israeli prisons. Human rights groups report widespread torture, starvation, and medical neglect, with several deaths occurring in custody.
In November 2024, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
The hostages’ plea video not only exposes the grim reality of their captivity but also underscores the larger context of a brutal war that has turned Gaza into what many call a “graveyard of children”—a place where both captives and civilians are running out of time.
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