TPC Staff
The Palestine Chronicle / December 8, 2024
‘Now, I am certain that you do not know your enemies … And this is your failure and the failure of the government since October 7.’
The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas, released a new video on Saturday, showing an Israeli captive held in Gaza who criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and called on the Israeli people to “not neglect” the captives.
“To the prime minister, I heard about your new plan to return us home. I heard that you will give $5 million to whoever returns us safely home and provide them a safe exit from the Gaza Strip,” said Matan Zangauker who has been in captivity for more than 420 days.
“I am very disappointed. Now, I am certain that you do not know your enemies. And you do not understand their mentality. And this is your failure and the failure of the government since October 7,” he continued, in the video released on Saturday.
“Why do you make all these mistakes? I am paying the price for your mistakes that you make every day. And I am dying little by little, and every day, a part of me dies,” said the captive.
Call to protest
Addressing the “people of Israel,” Zangauker pleaded “Do not neglect us, we are still alive.”
“It is illogical that we pay the price for the government’s mistakes. And it is time to put an end to our suffering,” the captive urged.
He called on the Israeli people to protest outside Netanyahu’s house and not allow him any peace.
“I ask all the people of Israel to go out and demonstrate in front of the prime minister’s house. And not to let him sleep even for a minute,” said Zangauker. “We are suffering. It is more appropriate for him and his family to suffer like us.”
“I don’t understand, why is this taking so long? Why is there no agreement? Why are we here? Don’t forget us,” he pleaded.
Zangauker also highlighted that “we live with little food, and undrinkable water and little medicine,” adding that a “lack of hygiene” has caused skin diseases.
‘End this war already !’
Reacting to the video, the captive’s mother, Einav Zangauker, said this was the first “sign of life” from her son and urged Netanyahu to “bring him” and the other captives home “through a comprehensive hostage release deal.”
“Any deal that does not bring everyone home is a death sentence for those left behind,” she said. “Netanyahu, end this war already and bring everyone home!”
Thousands of protesters rallied on Saturday in Tel Aviv and other cities calling for a “hostage deal” following the release of the video, the Times of Israel reported.
Five people were arrested during the protests for among other reasons, “attacking an officer, breaking through police barriers,” the report said.
In between the protests, it noted, “a group urging ‘civil rebellion’ set up a ‘conscription booth’ to enlist people willing to engage in nonviolent civil disobedience.”
In a statement, Netanyahu’s office said the premier had spoken with Zangauker, the report said, and told her that he “fully understands the severe suffering that Matan and all the hostages and their families are going through.”
33 captives killed
On Monday, Hamas announced the deaths of 33 Israeli captives it had been holding, attributing their deaths to Israeli airstrikes on Gaza since the beginning of the conflict in October 2023.
In a video shared on its Telegram channel, Hamas said in a statement, that the “captives of the occupation died in Gaza due to the stubbornness of the war criminal Netanyahu and his continued aggression.”
The group warned that continued Israeli military operations could further endanger the lives of the captives, adding, “By continuing your insane war, you may lose your captives forever. Do what you must do before it is too late”.
Hamas also noted that approximately 251 individuals were taken captive on October 7, 2023, during the initial escalation.
By November 2023, about 105 captives were released as part of an exchange agreement.
