Survivor's ordeal: the cruelty of Hamas against an Israeli family in 50‑day captivity

On the morning of 7th October 2023, Israel faced an attack by Hamas fighters. The death toll was the highest since the war with the Syrian-Egyptian coalition in 1973. The conflict that has lasted for three months has resulted in the death of thousands of Gaza Strip residents. Moreover, numerous Israeli citizens remain held captive by Hamas fighters.

Mia Regev was amongst those who survived the heartless captivity. She was kidnapped with her brother and father at the start of the conflict, on 7th October, and was released after enduring more than 50 days in captivity. During a recent meeting with the UN ambassadors joined by former hostages, she spoke about her experiences during that time.

Regev recounted the harshness of the Hamas fighters:

"They took away my clothes, my identity and my name. The terrorist who was in charge of me would say every day that if the army tried to rescue me, he would immediately shoot me so I wouldn't die alone," she recollected.

She appealed to the ambassadors in attendance to assist in freeing the remaining hostages, believing their time was running out.

Lawyer Marina Medvin further highlighted the atrocities committed by Hamas fighters. She shared on Twitter how they had tortured Mia, hitting her on her already injured ankle which had been shot earlier. "They laughed at her pain," she exposed.

As per The Jerusalem Post, during the meeting, Gilad Erdan, an Israeli lawyer and politician from the Likud party and member of the Knesset since 2003 took the stand. He hailed the released siblings as heroes, adding, "Your courage and strength move us all. I pay tribute to you."

He reinforced in the discussion that - in his belief - a ceasefire would be unacceptable as it would allow Hamas to retain power and prepare for another onslaught. "Their goal is to terrorise us and force us to leave our country out of fear," he emphasised.

"I hope you understand why we can no longer live under these threats and why we are so determined to annihilate them," he added.