"Please bring in food before I die of hunger. I am on the verge of death and living in hell," said captive Israeli soldier Rom Barslavsky in a letter to his government that the Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad movement, described as his last before losing contact with the group holding him captive in the Gaza Strip.
The Saraya broadcast a video of the 22-year-old Israeli prisoner, a resident of occupied Jerusalem, in which he appears in his place of captivity, weeping, tired, and exhausted, tossing and turning in his bed.
The video was titled "Gaza: Killing by Starvation," referring to the worsening humanitarian conditions in the Strip.
The prisoner confirmed that he has been held by the Al-Quds Brigades for approximately one year and nine months, noting that his suffering began following what he called the "Gideon's Wagons" operation.
Barslavsky described his deteriorating health condition, saying, "I'm not feeling well. I have pain in my feet and hands. Every time I try to get up and go to the bathroom, I feel dizzy and fall. I can't breathe and I can't continue living."
The prisoner revealed a significant decrease in the amount of food provided to him, asserting that "from morning until night there is nothing," and that he eats "only three falafel sandwiches throughout the day" or "barely a plate of rice."
"I simply don't eat or drink. There is no food here. Food is scarce and we can barely get it," he added, crying.
The prisoner spoke about watching children in Gaza on television, saying, "I saw children dying of hunger, skeletons. I've never seen anything like this before." He appealed to his government, "This is immoral. This is torture. This is torture of innocent children. What is their fault that you should do this to them?"
The prisoner begged the Israeli officials, saying, "Stop this hell we're living in. Stop this suffering. Please stop this war. Don't continue killing young children. Don't continue your campaign of starving them. These actions do not suit your conscience."
Barslavsky made a final appeal, saying, "If not for the children of Gaza, then do it for your prisoners in Gaza. Bring in food and drink. I beg your mercy."
The video showed images of the prisoner writing in his diary in Hebrew while crying, in addition to previous photos of him and children dying of hunger in Gaza.
The Al-Quds Brigades concluded the video with a clear message: "What our people are suffering is what your prisoners are suffering," linking the prisoners' suffering to the suffering of the Palestinian people in the besieged Gaza Strip.
شارك برأيك
An Israeli prisoner appeals from Gaza: Bring in food before I die of hunger.