Hamas’s armed wing, Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, published images of 3 Israelis held captive in the Gaza Strip. In his speech, 79-year-old Israeli prisoner Haiem Bery, who is featured in the images, stated that the elderly prisoners had chronic diseases and that they “lived under very difficult conditions.” Bery said, “We are the generation who built the foundation for the creation of Israel. We were the ones who aterted the IDF Military. We do not understand why we have been abandoned here.”
Bery urged not to let them grow old in captivity, emphasizing their desire to avoid dying in airstrikes and pleading for unconditional release. Two other captives, 80-year-old Yoram Metzger and 85-year-old Amiram Cooper, were also identified.