Former Hamas hostage urges release of Israelis still held captive
- 101 hostages remain captive
- Four of them are Israeli-Americans
- Aviva Siegel's husband is among those still held
(NewsNation) — Former Hamas hostage Aviva Siegel has urged all remaining Israeli hostages to be released on the eve of the first anniversary of the Oct. 7 attacks.
Siegel was released from captivity but her husband Keith remains in captivity. According to The New York Times, three other Israeli-Americans are still being held by Hamas.
There are still 101 Israelis in captivity. Siegel was among them before being released in November.
“It’s very, very difficult for all of us,” Siegel said of the anniversary. “We really just can’t believe that a year’s passed and Keith and the hostages are still thrown on a faulty, dirty mattress underneath the ground and can hardly breathe.”
Siegel was released during the brief ceasefire in November, but peace seems a distant reality seven months on.
“I just can’t believe it that Keith and the other hostages are still in Gaza, thrown underneath the ground with no human rights,” she added.
On Friday, the FBI and DHS warned of the threat of violence on Oct. 7 in a statement. An Israeli airstrike on a mosque in the Gaza Strip killed at least 19 people on Sunday.