Geneva,Switzerland – A delegation including mothers of hostages held in Gaza is meeting with International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) President Mirjana Spoljaric today,following the release of disturbing images depicting the severely deteriorated health of two released hostages,Rom Braslavski and Evyatar David.
The meeting was organized at the request of the Hostage and Missing Families Forum. Though, the forum expressed surprise and disappointment that professor Hagai Levin, a leading expert on hostage health and advisor to the families, was excluded from the delegation.
Professor Levin, a physician specializing in public health, has been a prominent voice advocating for the well-being of the hostages and their families as the start of the conflict on October 7, 2023. He is affiliated with the Hebrew university-Hadassah Medical School in Jerusalem.
Levin has also been a public critic of the Israeli government’s proposed judicial reforms, which have sparked widespread protests within Israel since the current coalition government, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, took office in December 2022.
The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Directorate for Hostages confirmed Levin’s exclusion, stating the delegation to Geneva is limited in size.
“The delegation leaving for Geneva is very small and includes mothers of hostages and officials representing Israel,” the PMO stated. “It is indeed the result of the joint efforts of the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, the Foreign, Defence and Health ministries as part of the effort to raise awareness of the urgent need to improve the conditions of the hostages still held captive by Hamas.”
As of February 29, 2024, approximately 134 hostages remain in Gaza, according to the Hostage and Missing Families Forum. Hamas abducted these individuals during its October 7th attack on southern Israel,resulting in the deaths of approximately 1,200 Israelis and the taking of hostages.
