Israel to show prisoners clip of Gaza destruction prior to release under truce deal
Reports say video meant to demonstrate costs of war to terror convicts who have had little access to media, serve as a deterrent
The IDF and Israel Prison Service have prepared a video clip depicting the magnitude of the devastation in the Gaza Strip, to be shown to prisoners prior to their release under the ceasefire deal with Hamas in Gaza.
Israel is freeing hundreds of Palestinian terror convicts in return for hostages under the first phase of the accord, including many individuals sentenced to life in prison for their part in deadly attacks.
The three-minute video seeks to demonstrate the costs of the war to the prisoners, many of whom have not had much access to media during their incarceration, according to several Hebrew media outlets reporting on it Friday.
It is also meant to serve as a deterrent to the freed terror convicts, according to Walla.
The Israel Hayom newspaper reported that one prisoner fainted from shock after watching the video recently.
Much of Gaza has been decimated by the 15 months of fighting in the Strip, which were brought on by Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack, when thousands of terrorists invaded southern Israel and killed some 1,200 people, taking 251 hostage.
In July, the UN estimated that some 55 percent of all structures in the Gaza Strip had been destroyed, damaged or possibly damaged since war erupted. The analysis, based on satellite imagery, showed more than 137,000 buildings were likely affected at that time.
Earlier this month, Haaretz reported that the International Committee of the Red Cross had protested to Israel that some prisoners were being released with their hands bound behind their heads while wearing bracelets stating in Arabic: “The eternal nation does not forget. We will pursue our enemies and overcome them.”
The Prison Service replied to Haaretz with a photograph showing a prisoner bound in this way while wearing such a bracelet. Calling the prisoners “the worst of Israel’s enemies,” the statement added that the prison service “will not compromise on the security of our people.”
