Yusuf Alioğlu, Rania Abu Shamala
13 April 2025•Update: 13 April 2025
ISTANBUL
Israeli-American captive Edan Alexander, who is being held in the Gaza Strip, condemned US President Donald Trump on Saturday for falling victim to the “lies of (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu,” which he said hinders his release and that of other captives.
In a video released by Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, Alexander addressed Trump directly on the 26th day since Israel resumed its assault on Gaza.
“I see every day that Netanyahu is running the country like a dictator, while I am collapsing physically and mentally,” he said.
Alexander accused all parties of lying and breaking promises to secure his release. “Everyone lied --my people, the Israeli government, the army, and the US administration,” he said. “I heard three weeks ago that Hamas was ready to release me, but you refused and left me behind.”
Alexander asked: “Tell me why? Why am I still here and not home with my family and friends? Why am I recording my second video?”
“I truly want to come home safely and celebrate the holiday (Passover, which began Saturday) with you.”
Addressing Trump directly, Alexander said: “President Trump, I believed you would succeed in getting me out of here alive.”
He asked: “Why did you fall for Netanyahu’s lies? Tell me why? Why am I here, suffering nightmares every night?”
“Why am I here and not in my home? Why am I not in America?” he asked.
He voiced fears of being killed in Israeli airstrikes, stating: “I don’t want to believe that you might not see me alive again after this video.”
-Message to protesters
Alexander directed a final message to the demonstrators in Israel: “Keep protesting. Do everything you can.”
He noted the words of Yair Horn, who was released during the first phase of a prisoner swap deal. “I remember Yair’s words when he said: ‘Our time is running out,’ and now it really is,” he said.
“Every day, I feel the bombing getting closer to our heads. It’s very hard ... we are losing hope,” he said.
“This video is mine, this is my face -- try to remember it.”
He ended with a haunting message: “We truly believe we will return home as corpses. There is nothing more to say. There is no hope.”
The families of Israeli captives later demanded that the public continue demonstrating against Netanyahu’s government, urging action to reach a prisoner exchange deal with Palestinian factions that could bring their loved ones home.
The appeal came during a news conference held by relatives of the captives near the Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv.
One relative said: “Do not stop taking to the streets. Do not lose hope, until the government brings all our children back.”
She accused the government of using the hostages as political leverage.
“Since the events of Oct. 7, the government has done everything to sacrifice the captives in Gaza,” she said. “We are being forced to fight against a heartless government to bring our families back, and sadly, that won’t happen without a real struggle.”
Israel estimates 59 hostages are still being held in Gaza, with at least 22 alive.
They were expected to be set free in the second phase of a Gaza ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement, which would require Israel to fully withdraw from Gaza and end the war permanently.
But Israel renewed the assault and broke a January ceasefire agreement. It has killed nearly 51,000 Palestinians in Gaza since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks and reduced the enclave to rubble.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
