The cruel release of a Hamas propaganda video on Saturday shows signs of life for the last living US hostage, Edan Alexander — but also comes at the beginning of Passover, mocking the freedom-themed Jewish holiday.
Alexander, the Israeli-American solider from New Jersey, states in the three-minute-long video that he’s been held in captivity for 551 days, indicating it was filmed recently.
Alexander, 21, was taken hostage on Oct. 7, 2023 during Hamas’ attack on Israel.
“When you sit down to mark Passover, remember that this is not a holiday of freedom as long as Edan and the other 58 hostages are not home,” Alexander’s family said in a statement released by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, referencing the holy day commemorating the Israelites liberation from slavery in Egypt.
The family authorized the publication of a still image of Alexander, but asked Israeli media not to share the latest video.
Since the war began, Hamas has routinely released propaganda videos of Israeli hostages.
The release of the video also comes as IDF troops continue to exert increasing control in Gaza.
The military entered the strategic city of Rafah, a last remaining Hamas stronghold, from either side of the Morag Corridor, cutting the hub off from neighboring Khan Younis.
The Israeli forces converged overnight, according to reports, successfully capturing the entire corridor and surrounding the city, which is bordered by Egypt to the south.
“During the past week and a half in which IDF forces have been maneuvering in the area, dozens of terrorists have been eliminated, underground hideouts and Hamas terror infrastructures have been destroyed, and the Rafah siege has been completed,” the military said in a statement Saturday.
The IDF is now inside parts of Rafah that it had not previously been able to enter, the military said, and plans to eventually control the region stretching from Egypt to the outskirts of Khan Younis as it looks to escalate pressure on Hamas in hopes of securing the release of the remaining 59 hostages. Only 24 of the hostages are believed to still be alive.
Israel will intensify and expand its offensive into other parts of Gaza, including in the north, Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement Saturday.
The offensive aimed to “crush and clean the area of terrorists and terrorist infrastructure” while expanding Israeli security zones, Katz added.
“I call on the residents of Gaza to act now to remove Hamas and return all the hostages,” he said.
The military discovered a miles-long Hamas tunnel under a school in Rafah, with an entrance located in the playground of a daycare, it announced on Friday.
Members of the specialized engineering unit Yahalom found that the tunnel – booby-trapped with explosives – led to a “central axis” for Hamas.
At least 11 terrorists who participated in the Oct. 7 attack have been killed since the IDF ordered civilian evacuations and began its incursion into Gaza on April 2, according to the military.
The military buffer zone has expanded nearly two miles all around the border of Gaza since Israel ended the cease-fire on March 18, with Rafah now widening the southernmost border. The military controls well over 50% of the enclave.
Earlier this week, President Trump told reporters, “We’re getting close to getting [the hostages] back.”
“We’re dealing with Israel, we’re dealing with Hamas, and it’s a nasty group,” he said during a cabinet meeting Thursday.
Trump’s envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, also said, “a very serious deal is taking shape,” according to Israeli news reports.
“It’s a matter of days,” Witkoff added.
And Egyptian mediators reportedly met with Hamas to continue cease-fire negotiations on Saturday and had exchanged drafts of a deal with Israel a day earlier.
