WARNING: This story contains graphic video and descriptions of women being violently taken hostage, as well as discussion of sexual assault.
Israeli television aired previously withheld footage on Wednesday of five pyjama-clad female army conscripts being seized by Hamas gunmen during the Oct. 7 raid that triggered the Gaza war.
The captives’ families said they hoped the footage would increase pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree a truce with Hamas and secure the hostages’ release.
The government saw the release of the subtitled three-minute clip to national and international media as an opportunity to shore up support.
“These girls are still in the captivity of Hamas. Please don’t look away,” government spokesperson David Mencer told reporters. “Watch the film. Support Israel in bringing our people home.”
The footage shows the young soldiers, all of them stunned and some bloodied, being bound and bundled into a jeep.
“I have friends in Palestine,” one of the conscripts, Naama Levy, 19, pleads in English.
One of the gunmen can be heard shouting back in Arabic: “You are dogs! We will step on you, dogs!”
Another gunman tells a captive: “You’re beautiful.”
WARNING: This video contains graphic content. The families of five Israelis held hostage by Hamas released footage of the female army conscripts being captured by militants during the Oct. 7 attacks. The families say the video was edited to remove the most graphic aspects. The Hostages Families Forum, which represents relatives of those still held by Hamas, hoped the video would increase pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to secure a ceasefire and the release of the hostages. ‘Please don’t look away,’ government spokesperson David Mencer said.
The Hostages Families Forum, which represents relatives of the 124 people — mostly civilians — still held by Hamas and other militant groups in Gaza, said the footage was recovered from body cams worn by gunmen who attacked the Nahal Oz base in southern Israel where the women were serving as surveillance spotters.
Shots of slain Israeli soldiers were excluded from the video and publication was approved by the families of the five captives, the forum said.
“The Israeli government must not waste another moment; it must return to the negotiating table…
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