Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday night spoke with Idit and Kobi Ohel, the parents of Hamas hostage Alon Ohel, following the Rosh Hashanah holiday.
The conversation, joined by IDF Brig. Gen. (res.) Gal Hirsch, Israel’s coordinator for hostages and missing persons, included Netanyahu’s description of ongoing military and diplomatic efforts aimed at defeating Hamas and securing the return of all 48 captives.
“The prime minister is now leaving for a critical and historic trip to the United States. We expect him to return with news. The entire nation awaits it,” Idit and Kobi said in a statement following the call.
Hamas on Monday published a propaganda video of captive Alon Ohel, an hour before the start of Rosh Hashanah in the Jewish state.
Details about Ohel’s condition first emerged from former Hamas captives Eli Sharabi, Or Levy and Eliya Cohen, who were held with him and were among 25 hostages and eight deceased released during the first phase of a Jan. 19 ceasefire. They reported that Ohel, from Lavon in the Upper Galilee, had been injured by shrapnel and blinded in his right eye.
On Wednesday night, Idit said, “Alon lost sight in one eye, it is clear that this eye is not functioning. We are in great anxiety about Alon’s other eye. From what we can understand, Alon’s injury has severely worsened, worsened as a result of cruel captivity and negligent treatment.”
She added, “We want to stress that the video published by Hamas is a video of psychological terror intended to harm us. We are held captive by this terror and we ask and plead not to publish or share it.”
Instead, the Ohel family authorized the media to publish a single still image from the video.
In June, Idit told JNS, “We want to save our son, we want him to come home, and we are thinking of ways to make that happen. We are very scared about his situation in Gaza; we are scared for his life.”
