On the conclusion of the Rosh Hashanah holiday, Idit and Kobi Ohel responded to the video released by the Hamas terrorist organization on Monday in which their son Alon is seen and heard.
Idit Ohel stated: "On the eve of Rosh Hashanah, we received a sign of life from our Alon, my Alon. Kobi and I listened and looked at every frame to take as much as we could from it. The more we look, the more worried we become - those are not Alon’s eyes. Alon lost sight in one eye, it is clear that this eye is not functioning. We are in great anxiety about Alon’s other eye. From what we can understand, Alon’s injury has severely worsened, worsened as a result of cruel captivity and negligent treatment. The Prime Minister spoke with us in a long and sensitive conversation. We greatly appreciate this and thank him.”
Kobi Ohel: “The Prime Minister is now leaving for a critical and historic trip to the United States. Idit and I expect that from this trip he will return with news, news that all the people of Israel are waiting for. His trip is a moment for all the cabinet ministers to rise to the magnitude of the hour, to be humane enough and strong enough to give him the backing and the strength so that he will act to secure the release of Alon and all the hostages.”
Idit emphasized: “We want to stress that the video published by Hamas is a video of psychological terror intended to harm us. We are held captive by this terror and we ask and plead not to publish or share it.”
With Yom Kippur approaching, the Ohels said: “We are approaching Yom Kippur - Yom Kippur is our day, the day of the Jewish people, the most important day in the religion, a day of repentance. What we ask is: this is the time, this is the moment to do the right and most important act - to return Alon to us, to return all the hostages home.”
At the end of their response, the parents asked to send a message to Alon, who has been held in Hamas captivity for nearly two years after being abducted from the “death shelter” near the Nova festival site:
“To my Alon, my dear boy, be strong. You are strong. We saw that you are strong. Believe in yourself and believe in this moment that is almost here. The hug between us is coming. The hug with Inbar, with Ronen, with Mom and with me is coming. It is coming soon. Be strong, my dear boy, we are with you.”