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Hamas on Saturday released a new video showing hostage Elkana Bohbot, marking the third such video of him to be published in the past month. The footage was released 561 days after Bohbot was kidnapped and comes just two days after Hamas rejected an Israeli proposal for a ceasefire and hostage deal.
In one of the previous videos, Bohbot appeared alongside fellow hostage Yosef-Chaim Ohana. Saturday’s footage is the latest in a series of weekly videos published by Hamas in recent weeks, part of what analysts see as a strategy to pressure the Israeli government into reaching a deal.
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Frame from first Hamas propaganda video featuring hostage Elkana Bohbot
(Photo: Hostages and Missing Families Forum)
According to Israeli officials, 59 hostages are still being held in Gaza, including 24 believed to be alive. Of those, 20 have had their status confirmed through proof-of-life videos or messages.
Earlier this week, Palestinian Islamic Jihad released the first video of hostage Rom Braslavski. A brief segment of the footage was authorized for public release by his family. In the clip, Braslavski pleads in distress, “All day I’m just scratching. All day I’m in pain. I don’t know what this illness is. Enough, enough. Please, Mr. Prime Minister, get me out of here. Trump — where are you? Where are your promises? Didn’t you say you’d free them all in a deal?”
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First Hamas propaganda video featuring hostage Elkana Bohbot
Saturday night, the main weekly rally organized by hostage families is scheduled to take place in Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square under the theme: “Only one heartbeat left.” Families are expected to renew their call to end the phased approach to hostage releases, which they say is emotionally devastating and divisive.
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The Hostages and Missing Families Forum urged the public to join the demonstration and called on decision-makers to “bring home all the hostages — the living for rehabilitation, the deceased for burial.” In a statement, they added, “Hamas cannot be defeated while it holds even a single hostage. The people choose the hostages. They are above politics, above all divisions. History will remember who sat in silence and who stood up and acted.”
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Second Hamas propaganda video featuring hostage Elkana Bohbot
On Thursday, Hamas officially rejected Israel’s latest proposal, calling it a partial deal designed to serve Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s political agenda. Senior Hamas official Khalil al-Hayya reiterated the terrorist group’s demand for a comprehensive agreement that would include the release of all hostages in exchange for an agreed number of Palestinian prisoners, a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, and the start of reconstruction efforts.