Family of hostage Alon Ohel say freed hostages told them he is alive but injured

The family of Hamas hostage Alon Ohel says that they have received a sign of life from him for the first time since he was abducted from the Nova music festival on October 7, 2023.

In a statement released via the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, Ohel’s family says that returning hostages have informed them that he is alive, but injured and not receiving medical care.

“We were informed today that since his abduction, Alon has been held in the tunnels in Gaza together with recently released hostages,” the family says. “We are happy and excited to know that Alon is alive, but devastated and shocked by the difficult physical and mental condition Alon is in, and the abuse he and the other hostages are still going through.”

Sharing what they have been told by the freed hostages, the family says Ohel “has been held in difficult conditions in Hamas’s underground tunnels, without daylight, and in inhuman conditions.”

“We were informed that Alon’s eyes were injured,” the family continues, adding that he is “being held in extremely harsh conditions, with a severe shortage of food.”

Calling on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to move forward with negotiating the second phase of the ceasefire deal without further delay, the family asks the public to join them tomorrow evening in Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square to mark Alon’s 24th birthday.