Hamas military wing releases video of Israeli hostages

Israeli captive Noa Argamani tells camera that two other hostages were killed by air strikes

Hamas military wing releases video of Israeli hostages

Hamas military wing releases video of Israeli hostages
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The military wing of Hamas has released a video that reportedly shows three Israeli hostages in Gaza, two of whom appear to have been killed by an alleged Israeli air strike.

The Ezzedine Al Qassam Brigades published the propaganda video on its Telegram channel on Monday after previewing it the previous day.

The video begins with three people speaking to camera who identify themselves as Yossi Sharabi, 53, Itai Svirsky, 38, and Noa Argamani, 26.

All three were taken captive by Hamas when it attacked Israel on October 7.

The video contains messages from the hostages, with English subtitles, before Mr Sharabi and Mr Svirsky later appear to have been killed.

Earlier in the video, Mr Svirsky says he feels "deserted" and urges Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to "stop the war".

"Bring us home. We are in difficult conditions, there is no food or water. I am in constant danger everywhere," Mr Svirsky tells the camera.

Ms Argamani then appears on screen and says their captors are "caring for us as much as they can but there aren't much resources left".

"The war needs to end now," says Mr Sharabi.

The video then switches back to Ms Argamani, who describes the apparent deaths of Mr Svirsky and Mr Sharabi from Israeli air strikes.

She says that all three hostages were buried under debris after a strike.

Ms Argamani says three rockets from an F16 hit the building they were in, with two exploding and one not.

She recounts how Ezzedine Al Qassam Brigades soldiers managed to pull her and Mr Svirsky free from the rubble, but were unable to save Mr Sharabi.

Later, Ms Argamani and Mr Svirsky were being taken to a different location, when their vehicle was hit by another air strike, she says.

She says that Mr Svirsky was killed, while she sustained injuries to her head from shrapnel.

"While we are still alive, bring us home," Ms Argamani says.

The video then shows what appear to be the dead bodies of Mr Sharabi and Mr Svirsky.

Israel's army criticised Hamas for releasing the video on Monday, saying it was a "brutal use of innocent hostages".

Military spokesman Admiral Daniel Hagari also rejected Hamas's claim the two hostages were killed by Israeli bombing, saying: "This is a lie by Hamas."

About 240 people were taken hostage on October 7. About half of the hostages were released during the week-long truce in November, almost all of whom were women and children.

Israel says 132 captives remain in Gaza, and that about 25 have died in captivity.

The Israeli military accused Hamas of "psychological abuse" on Tuesday.

Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said that Hamas would not agree to release any more hostages without ongoing military pressure from Israel's operations in Gaza.

Mr Gallant added that once the war had finished, there would be no more threat from Hamas.

"At the end of the war there won't be a military threat from Gaza. Hamas won't be able to rule and function as a military force in the Gaza Strip," he said.

More than 24,100 Palestinians have been killed since the outbreak of the war on October 7.

Updated: January 16, 2024, 11:21 AM