Mia Schem, a former Hamas hostage in Gaza. (Courtesy of the family)
The French-Israeli citizen was abducted from the Nova music festival near Re’im after being shot in the arm during the attack.
By Vered Weiss, World Israel News
The Israel Defense Forces said it killed a Hamas operative involved in the Oct. 7, 2023, abduction of former hostage Mia Schem during a strike in Gaza late last month.
According to the military, Ibrahim Abu Sakkar, identified as both a Hamas operative and a paramedic in the group’s Military Medical Services, was killed in an April 29 strike while allegedly planning an attack against Israeli soldiers.
The IDF said Abu Sakkar had previously carried out attacks against troops and later confirmed through intelligence analysis that he had participated in Schem’s kidnapping during the Hamas-led assault on southern Israel.
“Following intelligence analysis, it can be confirmed that the terrorist Abu Sakkar infiltrated Israeli territory during the brutal Oct. 7 massacre and participated in the abduction of Mia Schem from the Mefalsim area,” the military said.
Schem became one of the most widely recognized hostages from the Oct. 7 attack after appearing in the first Hamas propaganda video released during the war.
The French-Israeli citizen was abducted from the Nova music festival near Re’im after being shot in the arm during the attack.
She was held in Gaza for 54 days before being released on Nov. 30, 2023.
Following her release, Schem publicly described conditions during her captivity, saying she was held in a dark, enclosed room under constant surveillance.
“You must not be seen, heard,” she said while recalling instructions she received from a guard.
She also said she was forced to appear in a Hamas propaganda video because “you do what you’re told. You’re afraid to die.”
According to Schem, one of her captors forced her to watch a televised news conference featuring her mother as a form of psychological torment.
She also said she was held inside the home of one of her captors, whose wife “toyed” with her and withheld food while serving meals to her husband.
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