'Cruel psychological propaganda': Hamas releases clip of 3 female Israeli hostages
Hamas released footage of three female Israeli hostages as Israel continues into the next stage in its war with Hamas by expanding ground operations in Gaza.
The three women are confirmed to be Danielle Aloni, Rimon Kirsht and Lena Trupanov, whom Hamas took hostage following the terrorist group's Oct. 7 attack against Israel. Hamas invaded southern Israel, killing 1,400 people, a majority of them civilians, and taking over 230 others hostage.
As CBS News reported Monday, the three women featured in the hostage video are seen sitting in chairs as Aloni speaks to the camera, addressing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Hamas kidnapped Aloni and her daughter while they were visiting family at the kibbutz Nir Oz.
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One of the other kidnapped women, Trupanov, was also captured by Hamas at Nir Oz, while the other woman was taken from kibbutz Nirim.
"You promised to free us all," Aloni told Netanyahu in the video. "Instead, we bear your political and military failure."
Possibly at the behest of her kidnappers, according to CBS News, the woman asked the Israeli government if it "want[s] to kill us all? Do you want to kill us all with an army?"
The comment is likely in reference to Israel expanding its military operations in Gaza to eradicate Hamas and secure the release of the hostages. Since Israel's launching of retaliatory airstrikes, the Hamas-run health authorities in Gaza claim that over 8,000 people have been killed without distinguishing between civilian or combatant deaths. Last weekend, Israel sent ground troops into Gaza.
"Release us now," Aloni said. "Release their prisoners. Set us all free. Let us return to our families! Now! Now!"
The mother appears to be referring to the 6,000 Hamas members held in Israeli prisons. As The Jewish News Syndicate reported Monday, Israel Defense Minister Yoav Gallant declined Hamas' offer to release 239 Israelis held in Gaza in exchange for thousands of Hamas terrorists.
In a Monday statement, the office of the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu referred to the video as "cruel psychological propaganda by Hamas-ISIS." The office confirmed that it will continue working to return all hostages to their families.
"To Yelena Trupanob, Daniel Aloni and Rimon Kirsht, who were abducted by Hamas, which is committing war crimes," Netanyahu said in a statement to the hostages. "I embrace you. Our hearts are with you and the other captives. We are doing everything to bring home all of the captives and missing."
On Saturday, Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar said in a statement that the terrorist group is prepared to conduct a prisoner exchange deal that "includes the release of all Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails in exchange for all prisoners held by the Palestinian resistance."
Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, a spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces, referred to Sinwar's statement as "psychological terror" to create pressure, according to JNS. The IDF spokesperson also explained that Sinwar issues statements through intermediaries, as Hamas does not communicate directly with Israel.
Hamas has so far only freed four hostages since its Oct. 7 assault, including two elderly women, Yokheved Lifshitz, 85, and Nurit Yitzhak, 79. Prior to Hamas releasing the two elderly women, the terrorist group had also freed an Israeli-American mother and her daughter.
The women, whose husbands remain captives, were reportedly released for "humanitarian" reasons after Qatar and Egypt mediated their release. Both women were taken to a hospital in Tel Aviv after they were released.
In a statement last week posted to X, Joe Truzman, a research analyst for the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, expressed doubts that Hamas released the elderly captives for humanitarian reasons.
"While this may sound like a credible excuse, it's not," he said. "It's simply a tactic to create international pressure on Israel to delay a ground incursion into Gaza."
Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: samantha.kamman@christianpost.com. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman
