Hamas hostage Matan Angrest in grave danger, mother warns

At a press conference hosted by The Hostages Families Forum on World Health Day, Anat Angrest, mother of 22-year-old soldier Matan Angrest, shared a heart-wrenching update about her son, captured by Hamas on October 7, 2023, from a burning IDF tank at the Nahal Oz base. She revealed that Matan’s injuries, sustained during the attack, have left him permanently disabled, with a severely damaged hand that went untreated and no longer functions, alongside facial asymmetry that marks the toll of his ordeal. “He will be disabled his whole life,” she declared, her voice heavy with the weight of that reality.

Anat recounted testimonies from recently released hostages who saw Matan in Gaza, describing him as emaciated and confined to a small, dark cage, deprived of daylight and subjected to relentless torture and violence. They reported that he has had no access to the Red Cross, painting a dire picture of his captivity. As the eldest of her four children, Matan shares a deep bond with his mother, who recalled a haunting moment from the morning of his abduction. “At 6:30, I woke up and wrote him,” she said. “He replied, ‘Don’t worry, Mother, everything is okay.’” That reassurance now feels like a distant echo as she grapples with his life hanging in the balance.

Anat’s plea was urgent and raw: “His life is in danger. If he doesn’t come out now, we might not get him out alive.” Her words underscored the desperation felt by families of the captives, amplified by the forum’s push to highlight their plight. For Anat, the fight to bring Matan home is personal and unrelenting, driven by a mother’s intuition and the stark reports of his suffering. As time drags on, she fears the window to save her son—once a soldier, now a broken hostage—is closing fast.