"Those are not Alon's eyes," said Idit and Kobi Ohel, parents of hostage Alon Ohel, who spoke out Wednesday evening about the Hamas video of their son in captivity released earlier this week.
The family is only allowing the publication of one photo, which was taken from the video published by the terrorist group on Monday.
Ohel has been held hostage in Gaza for 719 days after being taken near the Nova music festival. His family has confirmed that since his kidnapping, he has gone blind in one eye.
“The Prime Minister is now leaving for a critical and historic trip to the United States. We expect him to return with news. The entire nation awaits it," Idit and Kobi Ohel said ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to the US.
The family received the Hamas video on the eve of Rosh Hashanah. They recalled listening and looking at every frame to take in as much as they could.
"The more we look, the more worried we become," they said.
Family worries about Ohel's health and sight
The parents also expressed concern for Ohel's deteriorating health, saying, "We are in great anxiety about Alon's other eye. From what we can understand, Alon’s injury has severely worsened, worsened as a result of cruel captivity and negligent treatment."
The prime minister's trip to the US "is a moment for all the cabinet ministers to rise to the magnitude of the hour, to be humane enough and strong enough to give him the backing and the strength so that he will act to secure the release of Alon and all the hostages,” Alon's parents added.
Idit reiterated the family's wishes for the video not to be shared publicly, saying that the video is "psychological terror intended to harm us."
"We are held captive by this terror, and we ask and plead not to publish or share it," she said.
With Yom Kippur approaching, the family said, "What we ask is this: this is the time, this is the moment to do the right and most important act - to return Alon to us, to return all the hostages home.”
“To my Alon, my dear boy, be strong. You are strong," Kobi said in a message to his son.
"We saw that you are strong. Believe in yourself and believe in this moment that is almost here. The hug between us is coming. The hug with Inbar, with Ronen, with Mom, and with me is coming. It is coming soon. Be strong, my dear boy, we are with you.”