Palestinian Islamic Jihad releases video of frail Israeli hostage Rom Braslavski, leaving family reeling: ‘They broke my boy’
The Palestinian Islamic Jihad released a chilling video Thursday showing Israeli hostage Rom Braslavski “thin, limp, and crying” and “broken” by the terror group, according to his shaken family.
Braslavski, 21, looks ghostly and frail as he cries during the six-minute video, which the terror group said was recorded days before contact was lost with his captors, The Times of Israel reported.
His family claimed ISJ “broke” Braslavski and is pleading that his life not be forgotten.
“They broke my boy. I want him home now,” his devastated mom Tami Braslavski told Ynet news.
“I know how many beatings he is taking. I know because Rom doesn’t cry. If he cries, it is because they are abusing him. Look at him. Thin, limp, crying. All his bones are out.”
The video was not released to the public, but still images approved by the family show a gaunt Rom Braslavski with stubble and tears welling up in the dark circles beneath his eyes.
This is the second video the PIJ has released of Braslavski, previously issuing a scripted video in which the captive said he was experiencing “hell” and appeared visibly ill.
Braslavski’s family demanded a joint meeting with security chiefs and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, The Times of Israel reported.
They are also hoping his cause is not lost in the hearts of the public, which has been overwhelmed by images of starvation from the Gaza Strip.
“People are speaking a lot about what is happening in Gaza, about the hunger, and I ask all those who are speaking about hunger: Did you see our Rom? He doesn’t receive food, and he doesn’t receive medicine,” the family wrote in a statement issued by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.
“He is simply forgotten there.”
In Gaza, food conditions have deteriorated into famine conditions, with water shortages also bringing the area to the verge of a “man-made” drought, according to the United Nations.
At least 48 Palestinians were reportedly killed by Israeli soldiers at an aid site while attempting to collect their food rations on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Israel estimates that there are still 20 living hostages trapped in Gaza and the bodies of up to 50 who perished while captive.
President Trump urged Hamas to free the remaining Israeli hostages and bring an end to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
“The fastest way to end the Humanitarian Crises in Gaza is for Hamas to SURRENDER AND RELEASE THE HOSTAGES!!!,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post Thursday.
Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff is set to touch down in Israel and visit aid sites with Israel ambassador Mike Huckabee.