Hamas escalated pressure for a hostage deal on Friday afternoon by releasing a new video—allegedly filmed this week—showing proof of life from captive Evyatar David, who has been held in captivity for 665 days. At the request of the Hostages’ Families Headquarters, the video or any excerpts from it will only be published with the family's consent.
Just this week, Ilai David, Evyatar's brother, spoke about the fight for his release: “My brother is in the worst possible place. In a tunnel, with no light, no bathroom. He eats next to the hole he uses to relieve himself. There’s nothing worse than that. So what more could they possibly do to him? Every day he’s there is a nightmare.” He added, “I’ll do anything to bring Evyatar back. This is the mission of my life. All the pain, the longing, the frustration—they all come second.”
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In February, during the previous hostage deal, Hamas released a video and proof of life of Evyatar David and Guy Gilboa-Dalal. They were brought to the location where three hostages—Omer Wenkert, Omer Shem Tov, and Eliyah Cohen—were being released, solely to watch what Hamas staged as a cynical “ceremony.” The families of Evyatar and Guy approved the release of that particularly cruel footage.
The video Hamas released in February
At the start of that video, the two are seen sitting inside a Hamas vehicle, parked just next to the stage where the three hostages stood moments before their release. Evyatar pleads, “Please, save us, please, bring us home. I just want to go home, I’m begging you, I’m begging.” He adds: “Help us, people of Israel, get us out. We want to be like them.”