Freed hostage Omer Wenkert says remaining captives are ‘starving, humiliated, miserable’

Thousands of people gather in Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square for the weekly “Singing for Their Return” event, praying and singing for the return of the 50 hostages, with speakers from bereaved families, wives of reservists and soldiers.

Released hostage Omer Wenkert shares details from his 505 days of captivity in Gaza, including meeting former hostage Liam Or in the Hamas tunnels during those first days, and who told Wenkert not to lose hope. Or was released in the November 2023 ceasefire.

Wenkert also spent eight months in captivity with Tal Shoham, who was released with him, leaving behind Guy Gilboa-Dalal and Evyatar David, who are still hostages.

“They are still living an ongoing nightmare every single moment, experiencing endless and intensifying hell, starving, humiliated, miserable, and crying out to return to freedom,” says Wenkert. “I stand here today — and I am their voice! I cry out their pain and their pleas to come home!”

Tuval Rosenberg, a reservist tank commander, speaks at the Hostages Square event, describing his personal connections to six hostages, both living and dead.

He describes meeting Matan Angrest in basic training, now held hostage and meeting Daniel Perez in the commander’s course. Perez was killed on October 7, and his body was taken captive. Rosenberg says that he, Angrest and Perez served under Omer Neutra, another soldier killed and taken hostage, along with Oz Daniel and Itay Chen, also killed and taken hostage. Hostage Nimrod Cohen was under Rosenberg’s command during training.

“He’s known to us as a kidnapped soldier,” says Rosenberg of Cohen, “but he is much more than that. He is a world in and of himself.”

Rabbi Doron Perez, father of Daniel Perez, also speaks, praying that his son will merit a dignified burial in the land of Israel, and that the hostages return home.