As the Gaza war marks its first anniversary, an Israeli man held hostage by Hamas on Friday recalled hearing assaults during his captivity.
Shlomi Ziv, 41, was one of four Israeli hostages rescued alive from Hamas captivity in June.
They were abducted from the Nova Music Festival, a trance festival held in Israel’s Negev desert on October 7 last year.
Noah Alghamani (25), Almog Meir Yan (21), Andrei Kozlov (27), and Shlomi Ziv (40) were arrested from two locations in central Nuseyrat by IDF, ISA, and Israeli police. He was rescued by a special operation. Abducted by Hamas at Nova Music Festival.
I’m feeling good… pic.twitter.com/PnkjL4GRQz
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 8, 2024
The Israeli newspaper Jerusalem Post quoted Ziv as saying, “In captivity we had a quiet night where we could hear every little noise, and then suddenly we heard the sound of someone being beaten.”
“It was horrifying to hear the cries of those who had been brutally beaten,” he added.
“What my captivity in Gaza strengthened above all was the understanding and realization that they do not want peace with us, they do not want us to live next to or with us. ” said Ziv.
He also said that Hamas members called them “cockroaches” and always said that the next time they did something like the October 7 attack, “they would not take hostages, but they would kill them.” Ta.
According to the Israel Defense Forces, Ziv was the head of security at the Nova Music Festival when he was taken hostage.
Hamas members carried out the deadliest attack ever on Israel on October 7, 2023, taking 251 people hostage from the Nova Music Festival and Nir Oz Kibbutz, sparking the Gaza War.
Hamas holds 64 hostages in Gaza
According to reports, 117 of the 251 hostages have been freed, most of them women, children and foreign workers, and 64 remain in Hamas custody.
This is the moment when Yamam’s elite unit rescued former hostages Shlomi Ziv, Almog Meir Yan, and Andrei Kozlov from Gaza.
Real life superhero. pic.twitter.com/1fMGPu3xpz
— Israel ישראל (@Israel) June 10, 2024
Of the 64 people believed to be alive, 57 are Israeli, six Thai and one Nepali, according to AFP news agency.
Fifty-two men, 10 women, two children and 11 military personnel are said to be detained in Gaza.
Most of the hostages were released during a week-long ceasefire in late November in exchange for 240 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli prisons.
The Israeli military confirmed 70 other deaths, of which 33 bodies are still in Gaza.
