Avera Mengistu
The Mengistus thanked Ichilov Hospital and its Psychiatry Division for the “dedicated, intensive and sensitive care for Avera and the family, thanks to which he can now be released.”
The freed hostages are Eliya Cohen, Avera Mengistu, Hisham al-Sayed, Omer Shem Tov, Tal Shoham and Omer Wenkert.
Supporters of Avera Mengistu gathered at “Hostage Square” in Tel Aviv.
The Israeli government will “continue to act on the international stage to reveal the cruel face of the Hamas terror group until the [hostages] are returned home,” says Foreign Minister Eli Cohen.
The Palestinian terror group on Monday released an undated video purportedly of captive Avera Mengistu, who has been held since 2014.
Avera Mengistu, who suffers from mental illness, crossed into Gaza on his own accord in 2014.
Past governments’ claims that attempts were made to secure the return of Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, as well as the bodies of Lt. Hadar Goldin and Staff Sgt. Oron Shaul, are “the biggest bluff,” says Goldin’s brother.
