Netanyahu Urges Red Cross Help For Gaza Amid Outcry Over Gaza Hostage Videos

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has appealed to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) for urgent assistance in aiding hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, following the release of distressing videos showing two captives appearing severely malnourished.

According to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office on Sunday, Netanyahu spoke with Julien Lerisson, the ICRC’s regional coordinator, requesting that the organization help deliver food and provide immediate medical attention to the hostages.

The ICRC responded with a statement expressing it was “appalled by the harrowing videos” and renewed its demand for access to the hostages.

In reply, Hamas’s armed wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, said it would permit ICRC access only if humanitarian corridors were opened across Gaza to allow for the flow of aid and food. The group denied intentionally starving the captives, stating that they would not receive preferential treatment while the rest of Gaza faces widespread deprivation.

Over the past several days, Hamas and its ally Islamic Jihad released three videos of hostages, including Rom Braslavski and Evyatar David, who appeared visibly emaciated. In one video, David is shown digging what he describes as his own grave. The footage has sparked outrage across Israel and renewed calls for a ceasefire and the release of hostages.

Netanyahu, in a statement on Saturday, said he had spoken with the families of the two men and expressed “profound shock” over the video content. He reaffirmed that efforts to secure the release of all hostages were ongoing.

Public pressure has intensified, with tens of thousands rallying in Tel Aviv on Sunday to demand government action to bring the remaining captives home.

Currently, 49 hostages taken during Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack remain in Gaza, including 27 believed by the Israeli military to be dead. That attack resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. In retaliation, Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza that has killed at least 60,430 people, mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry—figures considered credible by the United Nations.

An emergency session of the UN Security Council on the “dire situation of the hostages” is scheduled for Tuesday, according to Israel’s UN ambassador.

European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas condemned the hostage videos, calling them “appalling” and urging the immediate and unconditional release of all captives. She also reiterated that “Hamas must disarm and end its rule in Gaza,” echoing recent demands from Arab states, including key mediators Qatar and Egypt.

Kallas further emphasized the urgent need for unhindered humanitarian aid, stating, “Large-scale humanitarian aid must be allowed to reach those in need.”

Humanitarian access remains a major challenge. While Israel controls the flow of aid into Gaza, UN agencies and relief groups say much of it is subject to looting or chaos once it enters the territory, leaving many Palestinians to risk their lives for limited supplies.

On Sunday, Gaza’s civil defense agency reported that Israeli gunfire killed nine Palestinians who were waiting for food rations near Rafah at a site operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which is supported by the U.S. and Israel. “The soldiers opened fire on people. I was there; no one posed any threat,” said 31-year-old witness Jabr al-Shaer.

Additional fatalities were reported at another GHF distribution site in central Gaza, where five people were killed. Separate Israeli attacks claimed five more lives elsewhere in the territory, civil defense officials said.

The Palestine Red Crescent Society also reported that one of its staff members was killed in an Israeli strike on its headquarters in Khan Yunis. The Israeli military said it was “not aware of a strike” in that area.

Due to limited access and ongoing hostilities, AFP and other independent media organizations cannot verify casualty figures or claims made by either side.