Families of Israeli hostages demand they not be forgotten
Families of Israeli hostages demand they not be forgotten;
Israeli army video purports to show tunnels in Gaza where hostages were kept
Israeli army video purports to show tunnels in Gaza where hostages were kept
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NewsTranscript
00:00 Good day, I am William Thio and this is PTV News Now.
00:04 Families of some of the hostages raised awareness about an issue they fear has been fading since
00:11 the collapse of a November ceasefire. Officials say Hamas is still holding over 100 Israelis who
00:18 were taken hostage at the start of the war in Gaza on October 7. VOA's Natasha Moscovaya has the report.
00:27 Families of Israeli hostages came to this synagogue in the Pacific Northwest state
00:31 of Washington to raise awareness of loved ones still being held captive by Hamas.
00:35 16-year-old Haral Sharabi travels without her father, who is in Israel mourning his brother
00:41 Yossi Sharabi, killed in captivity. She is hoping her other uncle Eli, also hostage, survives.
00:48 Our mission isn't done yet. We have to bring Eli home and Yossi's corpse home,
00:52 so we can have something to bury. We didn't even have a funeral because there is nothing to bury.
00:59 Romy Cohen's twin brother Nimrod Cohen was also abducted. She fears people are starting to forget
01:06 about those who were taken in the October 7 attack. People don't talk enough about the hostages. Some
01:12 even forgot. I mean, it's been three and a half months now, and for some people it's like old
01:19 news, and we feel it every day, every second. She and her father, Yudah Cohen, say outside of
01:25 Israel, hostage families have seen both hatred and support, but not enough action. Our government is
01:32 more focused on fighting, which, as we see, after 107 days, it's not bringing us any of our
01:41 beloved ones back alive. More than 100 civilians abducted from Israel by Hamas were exchanged for
01:48 Palestinian prisoners during the November ceasefire. There have been no releases since,
01:53 with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Sunday vowing to continue the war in Gaza until
01:58 Hamas is no longer a threat. In exchange for the release of our hostages, Hamas demands the end of
02:05 the war, the withdrawal of our forces from Gaza, the release of all the murderers and rapists of
02:10 Nakba, and leaving Hamas intact. If we agree to this, our warriors fell in vain. Different hostage
02:17 families lobbied U.S. lawmakers in Washington last week, hoping they might help bring more political
02:22 pressure to secure their release. And for hostages who have been released, the healing has hardly
02:28 begun. Some have no homes to come back to. Others await the release of those still held captive,
02:34 or mourn those who were killed. Wuti, Ohad, and Karen came back. They were released after 49 days.
02:42 And our uncle, Abraham, is still in captivity. Along with 135 others, as they approach four
02:51 months in the hands of Hamas, their families kept in the dark about their condition.
02:55 Natasha Mosgovaevi, WA News, Seattle.
03:02 The Israeli army released more footage of what it describes as a tunnel where about 20 hostages
03:09 were held by Hamas. The tunnel is said to be 830 meters long and 20 meters deep, and has several
03:16 narrow rooms. The rooms have mattresses, toilets, and a sink with piles of dirty dishes to wash.
03:23 The army said it is located in Khan Yunis in the Gaza Strip.
03:30 This is William Theo. Stay informed, get ahead, get the news right here.