The father of an 18-year-old Israeli hostage – one of the youngest captives still in Hamas’ grip – said he feared his daughter was being raped after the former kidnap victim refused to answer his tough questions about her condition.
Eli Albag, the father of Liri Albag, who was abducted from her bed by Palestinian terrorists during the deadly Oct. 7 attack on Israel, said on Monday he learned from the freed hostage that his daughter was alive but kept in deplorable conditions – and potentially attacked sexual.
“They say that they don’t have food, they don’t have water, they don’t shower, they sleep on the floor, very cold humidity, 40 meters. [130 feet] underground,” said the heartbroken father of four, referring to the survivor’s account of the current hostage situation, according to Express and Star reports. “And the most important issue, [the captors] is touching them.
“We know that some girls – it is very difficult to say this – they attacked them, sexually, and we are worried, especially that they did not release them,” said Albag.
Israeli father Eli Albag has been calling for the release of his 18-year-old daughter, Liri, and other hostages from Gaza for nearly four months. AFP via Getty Images Eli Albag (center, with hands over face) expresses concern that his daughter was raped in Gaza. AFP via Getty Images
Thinking about the trauma his son experienced, Albag said, “I woke up in the morning in a state of life and slept dead. Every day.”
The Israeli father spoke to the media after meeting UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Foreign Secretary David Cameron during a lunch organized by Conservative Friends of Israel in London.
Liri Albag appears with dirt on her face and a hoodie in a photo released by Hamas in her first two months in detention. Handout
He told BBC News that when he asked a freed female hostage whether Hamas terrorists had sexually abused Israeli women, he got no answer.
“He was quiet but he moved his face so I understood something was going on there,” he said. “The hostage saw something, but he didn’t want to tell us.
“I understand they don’t want to talk about this, they don’t want to hurt us. But we understand. We understand very well,” continued Albag.
“It’s hard to say, and it’s hard to think about, but I’m worried they’ve done something wrong to these girls. I can’t understand them, I can’t understand these animals,” added the father, referring to Hamas.
Albag and family members of the three other hostages appealed to British leaders at their meeting to put pressure on Qatar, which has been acting as a mediator between Israel and Hamas, to “pick a side” and help free their loved ones.
Albag said he knew from a former captive that his daughter was physically unharmed during her first 50 days in Hamas custody. He appeared in propaganda videos at the time. But there has been no sighting of him since then.
Albag described his daughter Liri as “the happiest”, who loves “music, who loves to dance.”
Protests have taken place in Israel, calling on the government to ensure the release of the hostages. AFP via Getty Images
Standing outside the Houses of Parliament, he displayed two enlarged photographs of Liri — one taken before the Hamas attack and the other taken by her captors after her abduction.
In the second image, the 18-year-old looks terrified, with dirt covering his face and hoodie.
“Look at his eyes, they say everything,” said his father. “This is what I see every day, every minute, every second, this photo. It’s on my mind all the time and I can’t sleep, I have to take medicine.”
Albag told reporters that she looked Sunak in the eye as she shared her daughter’s story with her and handed her a dog tag with the words, “Bring them home.”
Families and supporters of hostages held by Hamas terrorists since the October 7 attacks hold a portrait of Liri Albag during a demonstration outside Israel’s Ministry of Defense in Tel Aviv. AFP via Getty Images
Other family members present during Monday’s meeting said the British PM was very supportive and told them he “will do everything he can” to secure the freedom of their loved ones.
But Albag also issued a warning to those negotiating for the release of the hostages that if sexual violence is perpetrated against Israeli women, it could result in many unwanted pregnancies that will soon be too late to terminate.
“There is a time limit to stop it,” he said.
Family members of the hostages traveled to London on Monday to meet the UK’s top leaders and plead with them to help secure the release of their loved ones. AFP via Getty Images
Eli Albag’s wife, Shira, repeated her husband’s stern warning during a session of the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, on Tuesday, a proceeding attended by former hostages and their family members still in custody, Haaretz reported.
“The cabinet needs to wake up, [as does] world — time is running out,” said Shira Albag. “They should have been home a long time ago.”
She added that she was “trying not to imagine pregnancy.”
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Former captive Aviva Siegel, who was on hand for Tuesday’s meeting, said Hamas terrorists turned hostages in Gaza into “puppets with which they can do what they want, when they want, and it’s unbelievable that they’re still there.”
Siegel said he saw terrorists carrying female captives “in inappropriate clothes, doll clothes.”
“We will reach four months soon [since they were kidnapped]. We were there for 51 days, and there wasn’t a minute that we didn’t experience abuse — and they’re still there,” he said.
About 100 hostages were released in November during a week-long ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. About 132 Israelis still remain in Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday rejected “blatantly” Hamas’ offer to release all remaining hostages in return for the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri responded to Netanyahu’s refusal by saying that it “means there is no chance of returning the prisoners.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
