Video of Israelis being taken captive on Oct. 7 is released by hostages’ families

JERUSALEM — A new video has been released showing Hamas terrorists taking three men hostage, including a well-known Israeli-American, near the Gaza border on Oct. 7.

A group that represents the hostages’ families released the video Monday after the Israeli army declassified it. The group says it hopes the footage will help pressure the government into reaching a cease-fire deal to free the hostages.

In the video, Palestinian terrorists are seen carting the hostages including Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23, in the back of a white pickup truck that speeds through southern Israel back toward Gaza. Goldberg-Polin sits bloodied, his forearm a mangled stump. Hamas has since released a video of him in captivity with part of his left arm amputated.

Goldberg-Polin and the two other hostages in the video — Eliya Cohen, 26, and Or Levy, 33 — were at the Tribe of Nova music festival when Hamas launched its terrorist attack. All three men are still believed to be held by Hamas.

Most of the footage was taken by terrorists who stormed out of Gaza in an attack that killed roughly 1,200 people and took about 250 others hostage.

The video begins with apparent security camera footage showing Palestinian terrorists, some in green army fatigues, approaching a shelter.

One terrorist shoots four times into the shelter’s door as smoke wafts out. The video cuts to a clip filmed by a terrorist of Goldberg-Polin and another hostage being pushed into the bed of a truck. Some images are blurred to censor what the hostage families group said is especially sensitive material.

In the video, the terrorist holding the camera celebrates the capture and thanks and praises God. “Here are the dogs,” he says, scanning to show the hostages.

Another terrorist pulls Goldberg-Polin’s hair and the cameraman says, “I want to take a selfie with you.”

Goldberg-Polin is seen with a tourniquet tied around his arm. Witnesses have said he was wounded when attackers tossed grenades into the shelter where people had taken refuge.

His mother, Rachel Goldberg-Polin, told The Associated Press on Monday that, “262 days in, a lot of people are thinking about these hostages as just this clump of people, not individuals. And we personally feel this is our son.”

Levy, who is seen laying in the truck, attended the Nova festival with his wife Einav, who was killed by terrorists, according to the hostage families group.

Levy’s older brother, Michael Levy, said watching the video was “horrific.”

“On the most horrific day of his life, I wasn’t able to do anything,” Levy said. “I’ve never seen him so terrified in my life.”

Cohen went to the festival with his girlfriend, who survived the attack under bodies in the shelter. In the video, a terrorist kneels on Cohen’s bloody face, pressing it into the truck bed.