Father of Israeli held in Gaza said to be homeless

Ashkelon municipality offers to foot bill for housing Haili Mengitsu, whose eldest son ‘starved himself to death,’ Yedioth reports

The father of the Israeli who has been held in Gaza for the past 10 months is homeless and his eldest son starved to death, the Yedioth Ahronoth daily reported Monday.

Following the report, the Ashkelon municipality offered to foot the hotel bills or cover rent for Haili Mengistu, and said it would increase welfare payments to the family.

Since his divorce in June 2013, Mengistu said he has not been able to afford to rent an apartment. Mengistu’s son Avraham entered the Gaza Strip 10 months ago, and is believed to be held by Hamas. Mengistu’s eldest son Michael died of starvation, the report said, without elaborating.

“I got divorced on June 17, 2013,” said Haili Mengistu. “Since then, I move from place to place. Sometimes I go to Petah Tikva, Rosh Ha’ayin, two days here, two days there, between relatives. I pass the time in restaurants, and from there I go search for a place to sleep.”

Mengistu maintained he could not afford to rent an apartment, and pleaded with the Israeli government to help.

The father of Avraham Mengistu, 29, an Israeli of Ethiopian descent who is reportedly held captive in the Gaza Strip, stands during a press conference in the southern city of Ashkelon on July 9, 2015, in which the family called on Hamas to release his brother and the Israeli government to work toward his safe return. (AFP PHOTO / JACK GUEZ)

“I can’t rent an apartment because there’s no money, my children help me as much as they can but it’s not enough. There are a lot of people like me who have no home. It has nothing to do with my son being held in Gaza,” he said.

“We are going through hard times. Very difficult. At least let us deal with the fact that Abera [Avraham] is not home in a place where I can sit with my children. That we can be all together, and so I can work with my children for the sake of bringing my son back.”

The Ashkelon municipality was working to find housing for Mengistu. It said the local welfare authorities would also add a bomb shelter to the Mengistu residence and increase welfare payments.

“In light of the family’s difficult economic state, the welfare department decided to increase visits to the home and to put together an aid package to the family, including the father,” a statement from the municipality said. “At the first stage, the municipality was renovating the home and procuring furniture that is lacking. From now on, the family will be under surveillance and close coordination with the welfare department.”

Hamas has refused to confirm whether it is holding Mengitsu and has not made any demands for his release. A senior Palestinian official based in the Gaza Strip denied that the group was holding the young man. According to the official, Mengistu was briefly held by the group but was released a short while later after Hamas interrogators determined he was not a soldier. The official further claimed that the Israeli left the coastal strip via a tunnel to Sinai, apparently in an attempt to reach Ethiopia.

Avraham Mengistu, 28, who is being held captive by Hamas (Facebook)

At a rally in Gaza last Wednesday, however, Hamas displayed a huge model fist holding a mock-up of fallen soldier Oron Shaul’s ID card and two other army IDs with question marks on them, implying that it holds two Israeli soldiers captive. (Mengistu, who is said to be suffering from unspecified mental issues, was not accepted for IDF service.)

Israel has made clear that it holds Hamas ultimately responsible for the welfare and safety of Mengistu and another, still unnamed, Israeli citizen being held in Gaza since April.

Senior Israeli officials have also made clear that there will be no Palestinian prisoners exchanged for the two missing Israelis. According to Channel 2, this decision was conveyed to the families of the two men.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.