Jerusalem:
Hamas’ armed wing (Ezzedine al-Qassam) Brigades on Saturday released a video of an Israeli hostage in Gaza following the October 2023 attack. In the three-and-a-half-minute video recording, Liri Albagh, a 19-year-old soldier, asks in Hebrew for the Israeli government to secure his release. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, a campaign group of relatives of the abducted people, said Albagh’s family had not given permission for the video to be published.
The family said in a statement, “We appeal to the Prime Minister, world leaders and all decision makers: this is the time to take a decision, treat these hostages like your children.
who is albag
According to AFP, Albagh was 18 when she was captured by Palestinian militants at the Nahal Oz base on the Gaza border along with six other female soldiers, five of whom remain in captivity. Hamas and its ally Islamic Jihad have released several videos of Israeli hostages in their custody during the nearly 15-month war in Gaza.
The terrorists had taken 251 hostages during the attack in the year 2023, of which 96 are in Gaza. The Israeli army says that 34 of them have been killed.
Pressure on Benjamin Netanyahu
Hamas said late Friday that indirect talks with Israel for a ceasefire and hostage release agreement were to resume the same night in Qatar. There has been no update since then. Qatar, Egypt and the United States, which are mediating the case, have so far failed to end the war. The weekly demonstrations organized by the Hostage Forum, scheduled for Saturday in Tel Aviv, have kept up pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for a deal to free the hostages.
talk on
The prime minister’s critics in Israel have accused him of stalling the deal. The forum said the latest video is strong and undeniable evidence of the urgency of bringing the hostages home. Netanyahu’s office said Thursday that he had authorized Israeli negotiators to join the latest round of talks in Qatar on a ceasefire and the release of hostages.