A new propaganda video shows three elderly hostages. (Twitter Screenshot)
‘It shows the cruelty of Hamas against elderly civilians, and innocents, who require medical attention.’
By Vered Weiss, World Israel News
A video of three elderly Israeli hostages held captive by Hamas was released on Monday, drawing sharp criticism from the Israeli military.
The hostage video was described as “heinous terror” by IDF Spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari in a press conference Monday, who decried the use of psychological warfare.
The video was entitled, “Don’t Let Us Grow Old Here,” in English and in Hebrew, contained a verse “Cast me off not in the time of old age” from psalm 71 and featured elderly captives taken from Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7th.
In the video were Chaim Peri, Yoram Metzger, and Amiram Cooper, with only Peri speaking.
There is no indication of when the video was filmed, although all hostages appear haggard and seem to have been in captivity for a long time.
Chaim Peri, 80, is a peace activist who often drove Gazan children to Israeli hospitals for treatment.
Amiram Cooper, 84, founded Kibbutz Nir Oz and his wife, Nurit, was released.
Yoram Metzger, 80, whose wife Tamar was also released, is a father of three and a grandfather of seven.
Roni Metzger, Yoram’s son told Kan News his father, who is diabetic and has mobility issues, looked years older and seemed to have lost a lot of weight.
He added, “Father is not in a good condition,” the younger Metzger told Kan News. “Everything must be done to bring [the hostages] home.”
During a press conference, Daniel Hagari said the video was an “atrocious terrorism” and added, “It shows the cruelty of Hamas against elderly civilians, innocents, who require medical attention.”
He added, “The world must work to allow medical aid and to verify their condition.”
Hagari also emphasized the urgency of freeing the hostages, and addressing them directly, he said, “We are doing everything to return you safely. We will not rest until you are back.”
However, Hamas official Osama Hamdan has indicated that no hostages will be released until the war is over.
Over the weekend, Mossad chief David Barnea met with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani in Norway and is slated to travel to Europe for further meetings to discuss potential hostage releases.
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