Family of slain hostage Carmel Gat releases part of Hamas propaganda video
Terror group also publishes video of Alex Lobanov; Gat’s family says ‘horrific’ clip ‘stands as yet another testament to Hamas’s ruthless cruelty,’ calls to save remaining hostages
Palestinian terror group Hamas on Wednesday released a video clip of two hostages whose bodies were among six captives discovered by the IDF last week in a Gaza Strip tunnel after they were executed.
A video posted to a Hamas Telegram channel featured Carmel Gat, 40, and Alex Lobanov, 32.
Hamas has previously issued similar videos of hostages it is holding, in what Israel says is psychological warfare.
The six hostages whose bodies were recovered over the weekend — Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Ori Danino, Alex Lobanov, Carmel Gat, and Almog Sarusi — were killed by their Hamas captors just days before troops found them, according to autopsies and the IDF.
Earlier this week Hamas published videos of two other slain hostages, Yerushalmi and Danino.
Most Israeli media outlets do not carry the video clips. Israeli authorities and human rights groups assert that hostages are coerced into making their remarks in the videos. However, Gat’s family permitted parts of the section of the video featuring her to be published and its contents reported.
Gat spoke Hebrew in the video, which had English and Arabic subtitles. It was not known when the video was made but in it, Carmel gave her age as 39; she turned 40 in May while in captivity.
She said she is being held “with little food or water, and poor hygiene conditions.”
Hamas psychopaths filmed propaganda videos with the hostages before they savagely executed them.
This is Carmel Gat before Hamas death squads shot her in the head.
Her family wants you to watch this. pic.twitter.com/Mc8uMocdDh
— Eylon Levy (@EylonALevy) September 4, 2024
Noting the frequent Israeli airstrikes in Gaza, Gat said, “I don’t know if I will get out of here alive.”
Gat called on the government to secure her release and that of other hostages in a deal with Hamas, and urged Israelis to continue demonstrating on behalf of the captives.
Gat also expressed concern for her family, saying, “I hope I have a family left to return to” and vowing to “stay strong” for them.
Gat’s mother was murdered on October 7 and her sister-in-law, who was taken captive, was later released in a November hostages deal that secured freedom for 105 hostages held by Hamas in exchange for Palestinian security prisoners held by Israel.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, the main group representing families of hostages, said in a statement: “The family of the late Carmel Gat has authorized the release of the shocking psychological terror video that Hamas published this evening.”
Gil Dickmann, Gat’s cousin, said in the statement, “It’s overwhelming to hear her voice. Yet, it’s heartbreaking to learn that she didn’t know her father, brother, and niece had survived, or that her sister-in-law Yarden had returned in the previous deal.
“It’s painful to realize we could have saved her — she could have been here with us,” Dickman said. “The decision to delay a deal has sentenced her to death. While we couldn’t save her, we can still save the other hostages. We urgently need a deal now, before it’s too late.”
The Forum said that the “horrific” video of Gat and Lobanov “stands as yet another testament to Hamas’s ruthless cruelty.”
“All six survived for over 10 months before being brutally executed by Hamas,” it said. “Hamas has not only murdered and kidnapped innocent civilians but continues to inflict psychological terror on the families of the hostages through these calculated releases of distressing footage.”
“Time is rapidly running out,” the Forum urged. “There is no room for delay; a deal must be struck immediately to save these innocent lives!”
On Monday, Hamas published a pre-recorded video of Yerushalmi — a portion of which was approved for publication by her family — in which she urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to conclude a deal to free the hostages and said she feared she could die in captivity.
The date the video was recorded was unclear.
Earlier this week Hamas had said it would release videos of the slain hostages.
The six hostages were among the 251 people abducted to Gaza on October 7 when Palestinian terror group Hamas led a devastating cross-border assault on Israel that killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians.
In the wake of their deaths, there has been a surge in demonstrations calling on the government to reach a hostage-ceasefire deal with Hamas. Netanyahu has come under particular fire amid allegations that he is avoiding a deal to satisfy far-right elements of his coalition who fear an agreement would bring a permanent end to the war before the stated goal of destroying Hamas is achieved.
Israel responded to the October 7 attack with a military campaign to destroy the terror group, topple its Gaza regime, and free the hostages.
