Yocheved Lifshitz, a released hostage, confronted the leader of Hamas while still in captivity, she told Israeli newspaper Davar in an interview, The Times of Israel reported Wednesday.
The 85-year-old Israeli revealed she was not afraid to confront Yahya Sinwar, Hamas’ leader, who she said came to briefly check on the hostages, according to the Times. (RELATED: Father Of 9-Year-Old Freed Hostage Reveals Most ‘Shocking’ And ‘Disturbing’ Part About Daughter’s Release)
Freed hostage Yocheved Lifshitz: I asked Sinwar how he wasn’t ashamed. He didn’t reply https://t.co/KLYpmEFCCa . Click to read ⬇️
— The Times of Israel (@TimesofIsrael) November 29, 2023
“Sinwar was with us three-four days after we got there,” she recalled, according to the Times. “I asked him how he wasn’t ashamed of himself, to do such a thing to people who for years supported peace. He didn’t answer. He was quiet.”
She also recounted how people hit her with sticks while Hamas took her into Gaza, and described the complex tunnels the terrorist took the hostages into, the Times reported.
Hamas is still holding her 83-year-old husband, Oded Lifshitz, in the Gaza Strip, the Times noted. Hamas took Lifshitz and her husband captive following the terrorist organization’s Oct. 7 rampage of southern Israel along the border communities. Hamas released her back into Israel on Oct. 23 along with Nurit Cooper, her 79-year-old neighbor.
“They did not care about kidnapping [the] elderly and children. It was extremely painful,” Lifshitz said of Hamas.
Hamas said they released Lifshitz and her neighbor on “humanitarian and poor health grounds.”