"I Told Them We Were Arabs. They Said Even Though We're Arabs, They're Kidnapping Us" - Freed Hostage

According to The Times of Israel, Bilal Ziyadne, an 18-year-old who recently returned after enduring over 50 days of Hamas captivity, shared his harrowing experience in an interview with Channel 13 News.

Bilal revealed that he and three other family members were held together during their captivity, receiving enough food to stave off hunger. However, the fear they experienced made it difficult for Bilal to recall the topics of conversation with his family during their time apart.

"I told them we were Arabs. They said to us, even though we're Arabs, they're kidnapping us," he recounts of October 7, when he, his sister, older brother, and father were kidnapped. He and his sister, Aisha, were the only ones from the Bedouin family from Rahat who have been released so far.

Throughout most of their ordeal, Bilal and his family were unaware of the existence of other hostages beyond their own group. As the war persisted, they began to lose hope, fervently praying for their release.

Bilal emphasised that unlike many freed Israeli hostages who slept on the bare ground and barely received adequate sustenance, all four of them were provided with mattresses, pillows, and blankets.

While Bilal admitted to feeling apprehensive about the Israeli airstrikes he would hear, he expressed greater concern for those who remained in captivity. Empathising with their plight, he stated, "I feel, and I know what they're going through."