You want to receive us as corpses: Israeli captives to war cabinet
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Al-Quds Brigades share footage of two Israeli captives in Gaza demanding that their government reach a ceasefire and secure their release through a prisoner exchange deal.
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Elad Katzir, an Israeli captive held by al-Quds Brigades in the Gaza Strip, addresses the Israeli government, demanding an immediate ceasefire, in footage released by the Brigades, on December 20, 2023. (Al-Quds Brigades/Military media)
The Palestinian Islamic Jihad's (PIJ) al-Quds Brigades released a video of two Israelis it holds captive, who demanded that their government work toward reaching a ceasefire and a prisoner exchange deal.
The first captive, Elad Katzir, demanded that Israelis pressure their government to make sure that Israeli captives return to their settlements. He also addressed the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and the members of the war cabinet, including Yoav Gallant, Benny Gantz, and Herzi Halevi.
In his address, Katzir stressed that Israeli captives were under the eminent threat of dying due to the dangerous conditions created by Israeli occupation forces.
"The situation is unbearable," the captive said, "There is a risk that we will die because there are no guarantees that the Israeli army will not bomb us."
Read more: Haniyeh to visit Egypt Wednesday for Gaza ceasefire talks: source
In fact, upwards of 60 Israeli captives have been killed since the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip commenced, some by airstrikes while others were killed by the gunfire of Israeli special forces.
"We are in danger... [an Israeli bomb] might be dropped on us... we feel like you do not want to bring us back alive," the captive said.
He also accused the Israeli war cabinet of attempting to kill as many captives as possible, in order to reduce the leverage that the Palestinian Resistance has in mediated negotiations, regarding a prisoner exchange deal.
The other captive, Gadi Mozes, said that Israeli captives constantly fear that Israeli military missiles threaten their lives.
He demanded that Netanyahu and other Israeli decision-makers do everything possible to reach a ceasefire and a prisoner exchange deal.
"We do not want to die in Gaza... Our lives are in grave danger."
رسالة الأسرى الصهاينة لقادتهم.. "أنتم تريدون استقبالنا جثث"#الميادين #فلسطين #غزة pic.twitter.com/8CkXscNTFJ
— قناة الميادين (@AlMayadeenNews) December 19, 2023
'Don't let us grow old here': Hamas publishes video of 3 captives
On Monday, the al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, released a recorded message from Israeli captives in the Gaza Strip urging their families and the Israeli government not to abandon them.
Under the title "Don't Let Us Grow Old Here", the video featured three Israeli captives who claimed to have been involved in "building the Israeli army" and demanded their release.
كتائب القسام تنشر رسالة من الأسرى لديها إلى عوائلهم والحكومة الإسرائيلية: "لا تتركونا نشيخ"
— قناة الميادين (@AlMayadeenNews) December 18, 2023
Don't Let Us Grow Old Here
אל תשליכינו לעת זיקנה#الميادين #طوفان_الأقصى #كتائب_القسام pic.twitter.com/Wnp098Pnse
One of the Israeli captives, Chaim Peri, 79, identified himself as being from Kibbutz "Nir Oz" and stated, "We are the generation that built Israel, and we participated in building the army. I don't understand why we are abandoned here."
He continued, "We don't want to die as a result of Israeli airstrikes," and demanded their unconditional release, ending his message with, "Don't let us grow old here." The other two captives echoed the same plea in the video.
Read more: Haniyeh to visit Egypt Wednesday for Gaza ceasefire talks: source
