Hamas has promised Moscow that Alexander "Sasha" Trufanov, a Russian-Israeli citizen held captive in Gaza since October 7, will be released "healthy and whole" within the next month.
The 29-year-old Amazon employee is expected to be among the first group of 33 hostages released in the current deal. Tragically, he likely remains unaware that his father was murdered during his captivity, according to friends.
"Based on the planned timeline, Trufanov could return home within three to four weeks," Viktorov told reporters Tuesday. This development follows recent high-level talks between Russian officials and Hamas leaders, where Moscow pressed for priority treatment of Trufanov due to his Russian citizenship.
Trufanov was kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz alongside his parents, grandmother, and partner Sapir Cohen. While his mother Elena, partner, and grandmother were freed in November's hostage deal, his father was killed in captivity. According to Cohen's testimony to Italian newspaper Libero Quotidiano, she witnessed Trufanov being "beaten bloody and thrown face-first into the ground" by militants during the October 7 attack.
Islamic Jihad, which likely holds Trufanov, has released four proof-of-life videos since his capture. In the most recent November 2024 video, he was seen calling for a hostage deal and describing dire conditions.
The case has also sparked controversy at Amazon, where Trufanov worked in the Annapurna Labs division. According to reports, the company faced criticism for firstly not saying one word about Trufanov and then allegedly warning employees against displaying posters about their kidnapped colleague.
Ben Hasenson, Trufanov's childhood friend, left his life in Holland to enlist as an Israeli reservist after learning of the kidnapping. "I thought I was flying to Israel for two weeks and that by the time I got back to Holland, Sasha would be home," he told Haaretz. "I wanted to do all I could to bring him home."
As reported by the Times of Israel, Russian Ambassador to Israel Anatoly Viktorov made this statement:
“We welcome the release of three Israelis as part of the agreement reached between Israel and Hamas. We hope that our compatriot Alexander Trufanov will also return home safely in the near future. [Moscow is] sincerely happy for the girls who have returned home, as well as their families and loved ones. We wish them a speedy recovery and a return to a full life.”
Moscow continues to leverage its diplomatic channels with Hamas to secure Trufanov's release, marking a rare instance of direct communication between a major world power and a terrorist group currently at war with Israel.
Jpost contributed to this article.
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