Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, released a video on Saturday evening of an Israeli hostage in Gaza, who expressed frustration with the Israeli government and military for ignoring her plight.
The Israeli captive, Liri Albaj, 19, appeared in the footage addressing her family and government, saying: "I have been a captive in Gaza for 450 days. My life has been on pause. Today marks the beginning of a new year. While the whole world is celebrating, we begin a dark year, a year of isolation."
She added: "We are not a priority for our government or our military. Even the world has started to forget about us and doesn't care about our suffering."
"My companion here is critically injured due to the military's ongoing operations. We are living a terrifying nightmare. Our survival depends on the withdrawal of the military and them not reaching us," the Israeli hostage continued.
Addressing the Israeli government, the captive questioned: "If it were your loved ones in captivity, would this war still be ongoing? I truly want to ask you: Do you want to kill us?"
On Friday, Hamas announced the resumption of indirect negotiations with Israel in Qatar's capital, Doha, focusing on a cease-fire, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, and the return of displaced persons.
Mediation efforts led by the US, Egypt, and Qatar to reach a cease-fire in Gaza have so far failed due to Israeli Premier Benjamin Netanyahu's refusal to halt the war.
Israel holds over 10,300 Palestinian prisoners, while Hamas is said to be holding around 100 Israeli captives in Gaza. The group also said that dozens of captives had died in indiscriminate Israeli airstrikes.
The Israeli army has continued a genocidal war on Gaza that has killed over 45,650 victims, mostly women and children, since Oct. 7, 2023 despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.
In November 2024, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
