WATCH: Ori Magidish: 'I still have friends in Gaza, we need to bring them back'
'There are 129 hostages who cannot celebrate the New Year,' says Magidish in the video
The IDF spokesperson released a video on Saturday evening of soldier Ori Magidish, who was kidnapped by Hamas into Gaza and rescued by security forces. In the video, Magidish talks about his abduction and captivity and asks for the return of the hostages still being held in the Gaza Strip.
"It has been exactly two months since I was rescued by the IDF and the Shin Bet from Hamas captivity. So many things have happened in my life in these two months and, meanwhile, my friends are still being held in Gaza," said Magidish.
"Hamas kidnapped me on October 7 from the Nahal Oz military base, where I served as an observation soldier and monitored the border of Gaza every day to protect my country. They kidnapped us while some of us were still wearing pajamas. They murdered my best friends and many others."
"I was in captivity for 23 days that felt like years. My friends are still in captivity alongside other women, men, children, elderly and sick people, while their families are still waiting for their return," Magidish says in the video.
"Despite the pain, loneliness, and fear I felt there, I had hoped I would be rescued. I pray that my friends who are still in captivity have the same hope. While the world is celebrating New Year's Eve, there are 129 hostages who cannot celebrate on their own. We must do everything to bring everyone home."
Kan.org.il is the Hebrew news website of the The Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation