Hamas release video of wounded captive who says ‘escaped death’ after Israeli strike
The Palestinian resistance movement Hamas has released a video showing an Israeli captive in Gaza, identified by Israeli media as Maxim Herkin.
In the footage, the visibly injured captive, wearing a bandage over his head, states that he is among the 59 captives still being held in Gaza. He mentions that he was wounded in an Israeli airstrike but “escaped death,” saying, “I am in a very difficult situation.”
Herkin describes the circumstances surrounding his captivity as a direct result of the “military pressure” exerted by the Israeli regime on Hamas to release the captives.
He says he does not have access to medication, which is extremely difficult to obtain in Gaza due to a total Israeli blockade on all humanitarian aid into the Palestinian territory. He adds that going to the hospital is also “out of the question.”
Additionally, he expresses concern for another Israeli captive who was with him during the attack, saying that he does not know what happened to him.
Herkin suggests that if Prime Minister Netanyahu’s son or the children of his ministers were held in Gaza, the war would have ended a long time ago.
In a rare acknowledgment, Netanyahu said Thursday that defeating Hamas was more important than securing the release of the remaining captives in Gaza.
Netanyahu has faced frequent protests from the families of the captives and others who call on him to implement a ceasefire with Hamas and secure their release.
The prime minister said on Thursday that bringing the captives back was important, but added, “In war, there is a supreme objective. And that supreme objective is victory over our enemies.”
Netanyahu’s remarks mark the first time the prime minister has explicitly described returning the captives as a secondary goal of the war in Gaza.
Israeli authorities have said in recent weeks that they believe only about two dozen of the 59 remaining captives are still alive in Gaza.
Hamas has warned that relentless Israeli bombings have put the lives of the captives at risk.
