The war of images begins. Hamas broadcast the first video of a hostage held in Gaza on its official Telegram account on Monday. Although authentication is currently not possible, the young woman’s family confirmed to CNN and Israeli media that she was indeed Mia Schem, a 21-year-old Israeli-French woman who was kidnapped at the rave party on October 7th .
In this propaganda video, which 20 Minutes viewed but did not share, we see a young woman lying awake with an injured arm. She says in Hebrew that she is being held in Gaza, calls for her release and claims she is being treated well. According to the file’s metadata, the images appear to have been taken six days ago, the New York Times states. In a second sequence, she appears in front of the camera and says she is from central Israel.
Between “200 and 250 hostages”
“My princess, my baby is alive,” said her mother Keren Schem happily in an interview with the Israeli broadcaster Channel 12.
Israeli officials on Monday morning estimated the number of hostages held in the Gaza Strip during the Oct. 7 attack at 199. Hamas’s military wing said Monday evening it was “between 200 and 250.”
This is the first time Hamas has released a hostage video since its attack on Israeli soil sparked a war that has left thousands dead in Israel and the Palestinian movement-controlled Gaza Strip.
According to the latest figures from Israeli officials, more than 1,400 people have been killed in Israel, including several hundred civilians massacred in towns near Gaza. Since the attack, Israel has carried out relentless attacks on the Gaza Strip. According to local authorities, around 2,750 people died across the area.