Bring Them Home Now, a gaggle that represents the hostages’ households, shared the video on social media Monday after the Israeli military declassified it.
In the video, which is graphic and arduous to observe, Palestinian militants are seen carting three hostages, together with Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23, at the back of a white pickup truck that speeds via southern Israel again towards Gaza. Goldberg-Polin sits bloodied, his forearm a mangled stump. Hamas has since launched a video of him in captivity with a part of his left arm amputated.
Goldberg-Polin and the 2 different hostages within the video — Eliya Cohen, 26, and Or Levy, 33 — have been on the Tribe of Nova music pageant when Hamas launched its assault. All three males are nonetheless believed to be held by Hamas.
In a press release posted alongside the footage, Bring Them Home Now known as for an settlement between Israel and Hamas that will enable hostages who’re nonetheless alive to return house and permit these killed to have a correct burial. The assertion echoed pleas from households of the hostages for the Israeli authorities to achieve a cease-fire deal with the Palestinian group, as negotiations for a pause in Israel’s offensive within the Gaza Strip and the phrases of the hostages’ launch proceed to stall.
Most of the footage was taken by militants who stormed out of Gaza in an assault that killed roughly 1,200 individuals and took about 250 others hostage. The video begins with obvious safety digicam footage displaying Palestinian militants, some in inexperienced military fatigues, approaching a shelter.
One militant shoots 4 occasions into the shelter’s door as smoke wafts out. The video cuts to a clip filmed by a militant of Goldberg-Polin and one other hostage being pushed into the mattress of a truck. Some photos are blurred to censor what the hostage households group stated is particularly delicate materials.
In the video, the militant holding the digicam celebrates the seize and thanks and praises God. “Here are the canines,” he says, scanning to indicate the hostages.
Another militant pulls Goldberg-Polin’s hair, and the particular person holding the digicam says, “I wish to take a selfie with you.”
Goldberg-Polin is seen with a tourniquet tied round his arm. Witnesses have stated he was wounded when attackers tossed grenades into the shelter the place individuals had taken refuge. His mom, Rachel Goldberg-Polin, instructed The Associated Press on Monday that, “262 days in, lots of people are fascinated with these hostages as simply this clump of individuals, not people. And we personally really feel that is our son.”
Rachel Goldberg-Polin, Hersh’s mom, has been a vocal advocate for resolving the hostage state of affairs since her son was taken on Oct. 7. She spoke to CBS News in April after Hersh appeared for the primary time in a video launched by Hamas, saying on the time that she had not heard his voice in six months.
“He’s clearly medically compromised and medically fragile,” she stated.
In the video launched Monday, Levy is seen mendacity at the back of the truck with Goldberg-Polin and Cohen. Levy attended the Nova pageant along with his spouse Einav, who was killed by militants, in accordance with the hostage households group. Levy’s older brother, Michael Levy, stated watching the brand new video was “horrific.”
“On probably the most horrific day of his life, I wasn’t capable of do something,” Levy stated. “I’ve by no means seen him so terrified in my life.”
Cohen went to the pageant along with his girlfriend, who survived the assault beneath our bodies within the shelter. In the video, a militant kneels on Cohen’s bloody face, urgent it into the truck mattress.
