During the United Nations Human Rights Council's September session on Wednesday, two video statements were screened on behalf of families of hostages held in Gaza.
Ilay David, brother of hostage Evyatar David, and Liran Berman, brother of Gali and Ziv Berman, called on the Council and on member states around the world to stand with the families and take urgent steps to advance the release of the hostages.
The statements were delivered under the agenda item devoted to dialogue with the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. Ilay David spoke on behalf of the World Jewish Congress, and Liran Berman on behalf of the International Association of Jewish Lawyers and Jurists (IJL).
"On October 7th, Hamas showed its true face - a terrorist group that murders the innocent, thrives on cruelty, and weaponizes hostage taking. Gali and Ziv were torn apart, held in darkness, denied food, medicine, and dignity. Each day in captivity robs them of health, hope, and humanity. Every day they survive is a miracle. I want them home so my mother can finally hug them, and they can hug our disabled father. Their return will restore the light that vanished with their abduction. The world has failed them for two birthdays. The international community must act now before it’s too late. Use every tool, every form of pressure, every channel of diplomacy to demand their release. The lives of Gali and Ziv, and the freedom of all hostages, depend on it. Their release is not only a moral duty, it is a legal obligation, and a test of this Council’s responsibility to defend human rights in the face of terror," Liran Berman, brother of Gali and Ziv Berman, stated.
Ilay David, brother of Evyatar David, added: "Last month, Hamas published another video of my younger brother, being emaciated, a human skeleton, buried alive in the tunnels of Gaza. Evyatar was barely able to move, barely able to speak, because Hamas brought him to a near-death situation due to malnutrition. Hamas uses my brother as a tool in their twisted and cruel propaganda, and he may die only because of that. The Red Cross has told us countless times that they can’t do anything to reach the hostages because Hamas wouldn’t allow it to happen. Right now, the free world must unite to make sure that the humanitarian aid that flows into Gaza will reach the hostages as well. The world must guarantee that the living hostages in Gaza will survive the negotiations until we have a resolution."