From the Liveblog of
Saturday, February 8, 2025
Freed soldier Karina Ariev tells Hostages Square: Seeing footage of rallies ‘gave me hope’ in captivity
Karina Ariev, one of the five female surveillance soldiers released from Hamas captivity in the nascent Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal, says in a video statement screened to hundreds gathered at Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square that while in captivity, “there were times when I said to myself — that’s it, you’re not getting out; but then I saw you.”
“I was exposed to your massive support and struggle and that’s what saved me; it’s what lifted me up and gave me the hope to go on,” she says.
Many of the hostages kidnapped by Hamas during the terror group’s October 7, 2023, massacre in southern Israel who have returned home have said they were intermittently exposed to media coverage of the massive campaign for their release.
“I want to tell you that we must not stop. It isn’t over yet,” says Ariev. “There are still hostages who need to come home.”
She honors the soldiers who “sacrificed their lives so that we could sit here.” To their families, Ariev says: “I have no words that can offer solace, but I want you to know that I and the entire nation will not forget them.”
Ariev also thanks “all the hostage families, who, despite tremendous pain and divergent opinions, have become one big family, and a big light that shone over the entire people.”
“Don’t forget that unity, don’t lose it — it’s what saved us and what will bring everyone home,” she says. “And even when, God willing, the last one comes back — don’t forget it.”
????Observer Karina Ariev, who was released two weeks ago from Hamas captivity in Gaza , delivered a video message that was screened at the central rally in the hostages Square in Tel Aviv: ." Hello everyone, for those who don't know me – I'm Karina Ariev and I'm 20 years old,… pic.twitter.com/PeHxjMJC0W
— Iris (@streetwize) February 8, 2025
Finally, Ariev thanks US President Donald Trump, urging him to “help us proceed from the first to the second phase” of the agreement.
“I really believe you have the power and determination to make it work,” she says, adding: “Am Yisrael Chai!”
The urgency of releasing all living hostages as quickly as possible was underscored by the emaciation of the three hostages released this morning. However, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed on Monday to commence negotiations on the deal’s second phase, as scheduled in the Gaza deal.
Speaking at Hostages Square, Sharon Aloni Cunio, whose husband David Cunio is held in Gaza and slated for release only in the second phase, accuses Netanyahu of failing to live up to the words “Never Again,” which he frequently uses in speeches about the Holocaust.
“The State of Israel knows very well how to say ‘Never Again’ to other nations. The prime minister uses it in every one of his speeches in the United States, where he is now,” she says.
“But what is the meaning of ‘Never Again’ if here in our country, an hour’s drive from Tel Aviv, Jews are left to die in Auschwitz conditions?” she asks.
Addressing politicians who have spoken out against the deal’s second phase, she says: “How dare you?”
“‘Never Again’ means no more Jews emerging from the shadows looking like skeletons,” says Aloni Cunio. “‘Never Again’ means no more stonewalling that makes us bury hostages and not embrace them.”
“I call on the prime minister: Wake up! They’re dying there!” she said.
This morning’s image of the emaciated hostages returning “will live in infamy,” she adds. “I don’t want my David coming back in a body bag.”
David’s brother Ariel is also still held in Gaza and not slated for release in the first phase of the deal. He was kidnapped along with his wife and three-year-old twin daughters from their home on Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023. Aloni Cunio and the girls were released in a week-long hostage deal in November that year.
