Following release of Hamas propaganda videos showing emaciated hostages, thousands of Israelis rally in Tel Aviv

Following the release of propaganda videos by the Hamas terrorist group showing hostages Rom Braslavski and Evyatar David in a severely malnourished state – and amid the near-total collapse of hostage negotiations – approximately 10,000 people gathered at Hostage Square in Tel Aviv on Saturday evening to demand a deal for the release of those still held in Gaza.

The scene at the rally was even more emotional due to the disturbing images in the videos released by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terrorists.

As in previous rallies, hostage family members addressed the crowds, describing the anguish, they felt at seeing their loved ones and such condition. The two siblings of Evyatar – Ilay and Yeela – noted the cruelty of Hamas' “starvation campaign.” 

Yeela, his younger sister, broke down in tears as she spoke about her brother's condition. 

"Evyatar is a sweet, vibrant kid with the most beautiful and contagious smile in the world,” she said at the rally. “Last night, we saw our brother deliberately and cynically starved in a Hamas dungeon. They used him as a live subject in a grotesque hunger campaign.” 

Ilay, Evyatar’s older brother, addressed the crowds in English, saying his heart “is being torn apart” by his brother's suffering. 

“My name is Ilay David, and I stand before you today as a brother and as a son. A brother and a son whose heart is being torn apart, watching helplessly as my younger brother Evyatar David, and his fellow hostage, Guy Gilboa Dalal, slip away,” he said. “They are on the absolute brink of death.” 

Following the release of the horrific propaganda video showing a starved Evyatar David, his brother Ilay spoke out this evening:

"They are on the absolute brink of death...Hamas is using Evyatar in one of the most horrific and calculated campaigns of cruelty imaginable—a live… pic.twitter.com/SyR6UYOaye

— Aviva Klompas (@AvivaKlompas) August 2, 2025

“In their current unimaginable condition, they may have only days left to live,” Ilay continued. “Hamas is using Evyatar in one of the most horrific and calculated campaigns imaginable. They are starving him deliberately, systematically using his agonizing suffering as a twisted tool for their depraved propaganda.” 

“There is no limit to the cruelty being inflicted on him and the others. And there is no end to the unbearable pain of our family,” he stated. “We cry. We suffer. But hear me – we refuse to give up.” 

Former hostage Omer Wenkert was visibly upset when responding to the media’s description of the videos as “a sign of life.” 

“A sign of life? How dare we even call it that?” Wenkert asked angrily. “What we saw yesterday – those aren’t the signs of life.” 

“I was warned it would be hard to watch,” Wenkert told the crowds. “But I thought, I’ve lived that, I’ve seen Evyatar, Guy, and Tal wasting away. It won’t shake me like it does others.” 

“The first thing I looked for were his eyes,” he said. “It was a video with no real words, but Evyatar didn’t need to say anything. His eyes told me everything – he was hurting, hungry, exhausted, weak inside and out, overcome with endless longing, and worst of all, paralyzed by the fear of being abandoned.” 

“I’m tired of seeing these images, of thinking these thoughts,” Omer said. 

He also accused Hamas of spreading lies in the video.

“I know they [Hamas] have food,” he stated. “I smelled it every day while I was given two spoonfuls of rice. They have everything. So why? Why won’t they give it to him?” 

Some in Israel noted the contrast between the emaciated condition of Evyatar, and the healthy appearance of the terrorist who handed him a can of food in the video.

Ofir Braslavski, father of hostage Rom, blasted the coalition government for abandoning his son in Gaza. 

“My son Rom has been in Gaza for 666 days. He is a hero and his country has abandoned him,” Braslavski said. “He is being abandoned every single day he’s not here. Two days ago, we all saw the price of that abandonment. I looked at my son and didn’t recognize him. Rom is starving for bread, thirsty for water, sick, physically broken and mentally crushed. My child is dying – I saw it with my own eyes, and so did the prime minister. He knows Rom’s condition. And yet he chooses, again and again, not to save him.” 

Addressing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu directly, Braslavski accused him of abandoning the hostages and urged the government to pursue a comprehensive deal for their release.

“You abandoned him. You sabotaged the negotiations. You invented the phased deal, the selective releases, the entire system of missed opportunities,” Braslavski stated. “Enough! My son and the other hostages are paying the price. Make the decision: end the war and bring them all back. No phases, no tricks, no gimmicks, no selection. We can’t breathe.” 

Some hostage families compared the situation of the hostages to the commemoration of the destruction of the two Temples in the fast of Tisha B'Av, which started at sundown on Saturday.

Itzik Horn, father of hostage Eitan, said that Israel “stands before the destruction of the Third Temple,” an expression used by many in the protest movement to refer to an existential threat to the modern State of Israel.

Many Jews fast on Tisha B'Av to remember the destruction of the First and Second Temples.

As the sun sets, the fast of Tisha B’Av begins.

🕯️We mourn the destruction of our Temples, the fall of the ancient Jewish kingdom in the Land of Israel, and generations of exile, persecution, and loss.

This year, our grief includes the 50 hostages still held in Gaza.

צום קל… pic.twitter.com/NayWCqtZif

— Israel Foreign Ministry (@IsraelMFA) August 2, 2025

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid responded to the release of the videos showing Evyatar and Rom, contrasting Evyatar’s condition with the international outcry over alleged starvation in Gaza.

“This is what starvation looks like,” Lapid wrote. 

This is what starvation looks like.
The entire world should condemn the murderous terrorist organization Hamas, which is intentionally starving the Israeli hostages it has held since October 7th.

The entire world should join the call for the release of all the hostages. Now. pic.twitter.com/cx9Ga8kgXu

— יאיר לפיד - Yair Lapid (@yairlapid) August 2, 2025

Shortly after that post, he wrote another in Hebrew, condemning the Cabinet for not addressing the hostage situation. 

“On Monday, on the government meeting's agenda, for the seven-thousandth time: a discussion about the threats to the Prime Minister's life. I obviously condemn any threat to the Prime Minister's life, but he is the most secure person in Israel,” Lapid wrote. “I suggest replacing the topic with a discussion about the far more real threats to the life of Evyatar David.”