The painful questions, ongoing protests, and desperate hope to embrace him again: the family of hostage Evyatar David and the families of the other captives begin another week of agonizing uncertainty. On one hand are the harrowing images of emaciated hostages being starved in captivity, one of whom tells the camera he has been forced to dig graves for himself and others. On the other is the hope that the public outcry sparked by these images might finally push Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his cabinet ministers, and decision-makers to commit to a deal that would end the war and bring the hostages home.
Tens of thousands attended Saturday night's rally by hostage families, a number not seen in the square for quite some time. Yet there is a sense that the protest movement is struggling to sustain momentum. Families are now weighing whether to escalate their efforts once again, seeking new ways to pressure the government to pursue a deal, despite Hamas' refusal to compromise.
Hamas may be holding additional footage of other hostages. The terrorist group obsessively documents captives but does not always release the material. David was kidnapped from the Nova music festival along with his childhood friend Guy Gilboa Dalal, with whom he has been close since they were six months old. The two are being held together in captivity and were filmed in February watching the release ceremony of three hostages, Eliya Cohen, Omer Wenkert, and Omer Shamtov, whom Hamas had freed under duress.
The deep friendship between the two has reportedly helped them endure the horrors of captivity, according to their families and former hostages. No recent footage of Guy Gilboa Dalal has been released so far.
Ya'ala, David's younger sister and the family's leading advocate, told Israel Hayom: "We won't stop fighting until we can hug Evyatar." She shared that their mother, Galia, has not watched any of the videos. "Watching these clips is absolutely soul-crushing. My mother and older brother chose to protect themselves and didn't watch. Seeing my big brother, a figure I've always looked up to, in such a state breaks my heart. The helplessness is driving us mad. But we are not giving up. We will not give up until we can hug Evyatar."
She herself has not seen the second video, in which Evyatar states that he is digging his own grave, footage approved for public release by the family. "I chose not to watch the second video. Only my father watched it. I can't bring myself to imagine the consequences of a partial deal. It's terrifying, it's insane, it would seal the fate of those who wouldn't return. The message is clear: he's exhausted, drained, and starving. He needs urgent help. He, Guy, and the other surviving hostages must be rescued. They are dying there."
It should be noted that the August 2024 murder of six hostages in a tunnel - Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Ori Danino, Carmel Gat, Alexander Lobanov and Almog Sarusi - did not lead to a hostage deal, which only materialized months later in January 2025. An estimated 50 hostages remain in Hamas captivity in Gaza, including one woman. It is believed that roughly 20 of them are still alive, while the fate of two more is uncertain. The rest are presumed dead, and their families are waiting to bury them in Israel.
