'We want to live in peace, Hamas doesn't: Peace will be elusive while Hamas controls, governs Gaza'

FRANCE 24 English

Visit our website: http://www.france24.com  Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FRANCE24.English  Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/France24_en

Transcript

00:00Well, first, the scenes were much less chaotic, but arguably more choreographed, if not staged,

00:15than last weekend's hostage release.

00:17Carrying Hamas-branded gift bags, waving and smiling on stage before cheering crowds, the

00:22four female Israeli soldiers, Karina Ariyev, Daniela Gilboa, Nama Levy, and Liri Albag,

00:28were handed over to the Red Cross in Gaza City on Saturday morning.

00:32You can see them in those pictures, being reunited with their family members that came

00:36after they were transferred to southern Israel.

00:39Now, one of those freed hostages, Liri Albag, expressed her gratitude to Israelis and to

00:44the military for their support.

00:46Take a listen.

00:47All the citizens of the state of Israel who supported our families and immersed them,

00:53and all the IDF soldiers who did everything for us, thank you very much.

00:57I love you all.

00:58Well, for more, we're going to cross now to France 24's Mark Owen, who is standing by

01:03at Hostage Square in Tel Aviv, and he's been speaking to Israeli-Canadian filmmaker Yoni

01:09Collins.

01:10Over to you, Mark.

01:11Erin, thank you very much.

01:13There was something of a setup in how Hamas carried out the handover today.

01:20I think that was very clear, but I'll just step back and let you meet some of the people

01:24who used to do the same kind of job as the four girls concerned.

01:27And it means a lot to these people here who've been campaigning tirelessly to get them back.

01:31They're incredibly happy that their colleagues, that's how they look at it, their friends

01:36are free.

01:37And Yoni, the man in question, is a former IDF soldier, now a filmmaker.

01:42Thanks for getting the gang together to talk to us.

01:45This is a moment of relief for you all, but nonetheless, there is a kind of bitterness

01:50about it all, I imagine, because there are still people who were captive.

01:54Absolutely.

01:55There was still one of the female observers who was captive, Agam Berrio.

01:58There were seven kidnapped.

02:00One was rescued alive in October 2023.

02:03One, Noa Martiano, was murdered in captivity, and her body was recovered by the IDF.

02:07And we got four back today, Daniela, Karina, Liri, and Emma, and we are so, so happy they're

02:12back.

02:13We've been fighting so hard to get them home, advocating for them nonstop, but Agam is still

02:17there, and there's 90 hostages in total still there, and we can't stop until Agam and every

02:21single hostage is back.

02:23So it continues, the campaign to bring those hostages back.

02:28What would your message be to the four women who've been released?

02:31I mean, clearly, they're great to be back with their families, very happy about that,

02:34but I know the message from you all, collectively, is one of big hugs and big love, I imagine.

02:38Yeah, we're so, so happy.

02:40We want to welcome them with love and hugs and everything we can.

02:43They are back in their families' arms, which is all we've wanted to see, and it's just

02:48the greatest feeling in the world.

02:49It's everything we've wanted, is just to see them back home with their families.

02:53On the other side of the equation, of course, there's the Palestinian people.

02:56Now, we could talk about prisoners or we could talk about Hamas, but I'm wondering what your

03:00perspective is about Hamas or Palestinians.

03:04What is the distinction?

03:05Is there a distinction?

03:06Absolutely.

03:07I want to make it clear that this was a hostage-prisoner deal.

03:12We are getting back hostages, they are getting back prisoners who have done serious acts

03:18of terrorism, a lot of them.

03:19Some have blood on their hands, many have blood on their hands.

03:23We want to live in peace.

03:24All of us want to live in peace.

03:26The problem is that Hamas does not, and they control and govern Gaza, and we don't think

03:32we can have peace while Hamas is still in power there.

03:35It's obviously such an imbalance.

03:37It's bittersweet, because we want to live in unity and peace, and we just have enemies

03:41that don't and want to wipe us out instead.

03:43So we've got the toughest situation in the world.

03:47On the one hand, we want this.

03:49We are so happy that our people are home and are coming home, and God willing, they all

03:53will, but this isn't going to be over.

03:55Hamas is still in power, and that's obviously terrifying to us.

03:59And it's terrible for the Israelis and the Palestinians that Hamas is still going to

04:02be in power after this.

04:04Do you think or do you feel confident that the truce deal can continue into a second

04:09phase, third phase?

04:10Do you or do you feel that what we're seeing today in Gaza, in West Bank, may somehow subvert

04:16the whole process?

04:17I don't know.

04:18I'm not political.

04:19I can't speak for whether it'll hold or not, but while it is holding, I'm just so happy

04:24that we're getting people back home where they belong, and I hope it holds.

04:28I hope we can have peace one day.

04:31I hope that Hamas is out of power one day, and I hope that all 90 are back home one day.

04:35Yoli, thank you very much.

04:36I'll just step back so you can appreciate this protest of the observers.

04:41The girls who have been freed, one still, of course, in captive and from Hostage Square

04:46here in Tel Aviv, I'll hand you back to the studio.

04:49Mark Owen in Tel Aviv, Hostage Square, thank you very much to you and to Israeli-Canadian

04:54filmmaker Yoni Collins.

Category

Transcript

Recommended