Family members of the three hostages killed inside Gaza by Israeli forces have spoken regularly to Israeli television and news websites since October, expressing their feelings and demanding the safe release of their relatives.
“During the day I am busy with communications and public relations. At night, in my bed, I take out my grief,” Avi Shimrez, the father of Alon Shimrez, one of the hostages who were killed, told Israel’s Channel 12 earlier this week.
“My wife, most of the day, sits and cries,” Avi Shimrez said.
The Shimrez family lived in Kibbutz Kfar Azza, where Alon Shimrez was arrested on October 7. Many people living in the kibbutzim near the Gaza periphery were advocates of coexistence with the Palestinians, a sentiment expressed by Avi Shimrez.
“We are a kibbutz that desires peace. I have no doubt [that there’s someone to speak to on the other side]. Not everyone is Yahya Sinwar,” he said, referring to the man who was seen as the mastermind of the deadly Hamas attack two months ago.
Pressure is mounting on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to do more to extract the remaining hostages from Gaza since the collapse of the first agreement with Hamas – which saw more than 100 people released – at the beginning of the month.
As more and more testimonies about life in captivity emerged, some family members — and Israeli society in general — felt a growing sense that time was running out.
This feeling has only increased in recent days. Even before reports emerged that three hostages were accidentally killed by Israeli forces, Israeli officials announced this week that five more Israelis detained inside Gaza had been killed, after soldiers recovered their bodies.
“On the one hand, I am happy for every hostage who returned [alive]. On the other hand, I am very angry with the decision makers in our government. “They should have released everyone already,” Avi Shimrez told Channel 12.
“Within our government, I don’t trust anyone. Is it their son sitting in the tunnel? My son sitting in the tunnel. My son doesn’t have oxygen. My son takes half a beta a day. I want my son here as soon as tomorrow.”
Many family members of the hostages participated in marches to make sure the government got the message, but Yonatan, Alon Shimrez’s brother, expressed doubts on social media that the popular demonstrations had an impact.
“Here in Israel, it’s like talking to a wall. You can organize demonstrations, hold hands, light candles, make signs, but [the government] “He just wants to give you the impression that it’s out of their hands,” he wrote.
Yotam Haim was also taken from Kibbutz Kfar Azza on October 7. His mother, Iris, told Israel’s Channel 11 earlier this week that she was confident her son would return even without raising her voice in the government.
“Some people think that if they don’t scream, no one will return their children. I tell them: we can do it peacefully and through respectful dialogue. The children will come back, I have no doubt.”
She told Channel 11 that she felt the government and army were doing their best.
The third man among the kidnapped, Samer Talalqa, is a member of the Bedouin community in Israel. His father, Fouad, was among those who visited the United States earlier this month to raise awareness of his son’s plight.
Speaking to the Israeli news website Ynet during his trip to the United States, he described his frustration and despair at not knowing anything.
“Bring back our children! How long can we take this? It’s been two months. We’re families just hanging on. We don’t know anything,” he said.
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