Former hostage Rom Braslavsky published another Facebook post on Tuesday afternoon, clarifying and apologizing for remarks he made in recent days.
“After the post I wrote, I felt the need to clarify a bit. This is my last post here,” he wrote on his Facebook page. “My previous post was written in the midst of an emotional storm and a small panic attack that made me unload on the keyboard to my friends on Facebook, which caused many people to turn against me.”
“In that post, I claimed that all I receive from the state and its institutions is disrespect, that they aren’t helping enough, and I disparaged the payments I receive from them. I want to apologize to those institutions, to the government, and to the state. All the institutions help to the extent that they can - what can you do, it’s simply not enough.”
However, he added, “I will say again that I am indeed disappointed and sad about the treatment and the lack of sufficient support we receive upon returning from captivity, but I am still grateful and thankful for every recognition I receive from them. Thank you to the Defense Ministry, to the government, to the state. It’s a shame you can’t do more for us.”
“In the interview I did, my expression of gratitude didn’t make it to publication, so I’ll repeat it in writing. I want to thank the IDF soldiers, the combat trauma survivors, the disabled veterans, every private and public individual who fought for us. I want to thank all of the people of Israel who did everything to get us out - and here the moment arrived, and we are here, back from hell. Thank you all. I apologize to all the bereaved families and all victims of terror. We did not choose to be Jews - we were blessed with it. ‘By your sword you shall live.’”
“Our struggle for existence will be eternal. I wish for us to stop the internal conflicts and focus on love and unity. And to anyone commenting to me about money and such nonsense, calculating how much I receive and poking into my compensation or that of other hostages - here’s a quick calculation for you: for every half-minute as a Jewish prisoner of Hamas, the equivalent Muslim civilian in Gaza during a war would be worth $10 million. And all the money in the world isn’t worth it.”
About the commenters on social media, he wrote: “I wish for God to take everything I received and will receive, just to give me back my normal life - normal, happy life, without nightmares and panic attacks. So I ask you, before you write something cruel about hostages or disabled veterans, I truly hope you will be in our shoes for even one day, and we’ll see if you manage to be heroes afterward - if you can even speak.”
“I salute you, IDF soldiers. I salute you, my friends in rehabilitation at Sheba. I salute you, security forces - I salute all of you. We will die for the flag! And to all our enemies - the people of Israel live and will continue to live, and nothing will break us.”