JERUSALEM. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, representing the families of Israeli hostages held in Gaza, has released a distressing video showing the capture of five young female Israeli soldiers by Hamas militants on October 7. The video, declassified by the Israeli army and now made public by the families, captures the harrowing moments of the soldiers’ capture near the Gaza border.
The footage reveals the young soldiers, aged 19 and 20, bloodied and wounded. In one unsettling scene, a militant tells a terrified soldier, “You are beautiful.” The video was recorded during the Hamas assault on the Nahal Oz military base, part of a broader attack on southern Israel that resulted in the deaths of approximately 1,200 people and the abduction of around 250 others.
Seven female soldiers, who served as lookouts on the Gaza border, were taken captive from Nahal Oz. According to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, one of these women was rescued early in the war through a ground operation, and another was confirmed killed while in Hamas captivity. The remaining five women, featured in the video, are believed to still be held by Hamas.
The families released the footage in a bid to pressure the Israeli government into negotiating a ceasefire with Hamas to secure the hostages’ release. “Every new testimony about what happened to the hostages echoes the same tragic truth — we must bring them all back home, now,” the forum said in a statement. “The Israeli government must not waste another moment.”
The three-minute edited video, with some scenes blurred for sensitivity, shows over a dozen armed militants binding the soldiers, two of whom have visible bloodstains on their faces. The footage also captures interactions between the soldiers and militants, including a militant telling a soldier, “I have friends in Palestine,” to which another militant responds in English, “Be quiet.”
In another distressing scene, militants are seen praying in front of the handcuffed soldiers, one of whom has visible cuts on her legs with blood pooling beneath her. One soldier, appearing to be in her pajamas, is pointed out by a militant who says, “You are beautiful.”
Hamas has dismissed the video as “a manipulated excerpt,” claiming that the minor injuries and blood seen are typical of such operations and denying any physical assault on the women.
The Israeli offensive on Gaza, launched in retaliation to the Hamas attack, has resulted in the deaths of around 35,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians.
Ashley Waxman Bakshi, a cousin of Agam Berger, one of the soldiers in the video, expressed her anguish upon seeing the footage. “Toward the end, I felt like I was going to throw up. I think any person who watches this video will understand that feeling, especially as a woman,” she said.
The video also shows militants dragging two of the soldiers toward a jeep amid gunfire. One soldier is seen hopping on one foot due to an apparent leg injury. Another clip shows militants holding a hostage by their hands and feet, though it is unclear if the person is alive. In another scene, three female soldiers, including Berger, are seen in the back of a moving vehicle, faces bloodied as militants yell around them.
“We know she’s alive. We can feel it. She has a twin sister, she feels her,” Bakshi said of her cousin. “She was taken hostage not severely injured. You can see from the video.”
Si Venus L Peñaflor ay naging editor-in-chief ng Newsworld, isang lokal na pahayagan ng Laguna. Publisher din siya ng Daystar Gazette at Tutubi News Magazine. Siya ay isa ring pintor at doll face designer ng Ninay Dolls, ang unang Manikang Pilipino. Kasali siya sa DesignCrowd sa rank na #305 sa 640,000 graphic designers sa buong daigdig. Kasama din siya sa unang Local TV Broadcast sa Laguna na Beyond Manila. Aktibong kasapi siya ng San Pablo Jaycees Senate bilang isang JCI Senator.
