Hostage Matan Angrest’s mother breaks silence, to release harrowing abduction video 

The mother of Matan Angrest, who is being held captive by Hamas in Gaza, announced today (Thursday) that she feels forced to publish the video of her son's harsh abduction.

She writes: "Tonight we are forced to publish footage of Matan, my son, from the moment of his abduction – being lynched, beaten, by a mob. I avoided watching this video, which only my husband Hagai had seen until recently, but I realized that we had no choice, I had to disregard myself and only think about what I had to do to prove it. To prove that there are people there who are buried underground, in immediate danger of their lives – who are still possible to save," the mother cried.

"This situation leads us to do things that are contrary to our character: At first we were silent. We didn't publish any material, we barely published the first photo of him from captivity. We wanted to keep Matan private and hoped that he would be released soon, that he would tell what he would tell and that it was his. We are not people of demonstrations, we are not connected to the media – Matan is not even on the social networks," explained the hostage's mother.

"Slowly I realized that we didn't even have the option to keep that quiet, they had already left him behind once. We have lost faith in the government we elected. In the previous deal, all the wounded were released, except for Matan. Back then, we were afraid to publish material because he was a soldier, and in the end we realized – yes, the state allows soldiers to be left behind. Yesterday I showed the video of Matan to his brother Ofir, this morning I will show it to his sister Adi, to my parents. Tonight you will also see him for the first time. Anything like this shortens their lives – grandparents who are Holocaust survivors, which is what they see and experience with their beloved grandson. An illogical reality. We work to maintain the soul of everyone who cares about Matan: my parents, the children, everyone who is close to him and is exposed to these substances – it costs them and me my health, I feel it," lamented the tormented mother.

"For a year and a half, 59 civilians are buried underground, paying a price for their failure – and undergoing daily abuse. My Matan, his injuries speak for themselves. He doesn't have time. We have medical reports from analyses of the videos that talk about long-term disabilities, abuse, facial fractures, serious injuries that get worse every day," says the mother, ending the painful post."

"My son is in a cage, starving and without daylight. Let someone tell me it's not the most important thing. There could be nothing more moral than bringing them and him home, now," the mother concluded.