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Shlomi Berger, the father of 19-year-old hostage Agam Berger, is urging international organizations to apply pressure on Hamas for the release of the hostages held by the terror group in Gaza.
His call comes in the wake of a UN report detailing the likelihood of rape and sexual abuse suffered by the captives.
Agam Berger was abducted from Nahal Oz on October 7 and subsequently appeared in a Hamas Telegram video, visibly in her pajamas, being escorted to a car. She is one of the 14 women currently held hostage by the militant organization.
Speaking exclusively to The Media Line, Shlomi Berger expressed grave concerns over the welfare of his daughter and the other hostages. “We are very fearful of sexual abuse,” he stated, underscoring the urgency of the situation.
Reports from freed hostages have detailed instances of abuse suffered by those still in captivity. According to Berger, testimonies indicate that some women have been subjected to beatings and torture at the hands of their captors.
“One of the freed hostages revealed that five of the hostages were confined in a room together. Hamas singled out one woman, approximately 40 years old, whom they believed to be an IDF officer.
They then proceeded to suspend her from the ceiling and beat her with a stick in full view of the other hostages,” Berger recounted, emphasizing that his daughter was among the witnesses to this harrowing ordeal.
At 19 years old, Agam Berger finds herself ensnared in a nightmarish situation beyond comprehension for any parent.
Berger lamented, “My daughter is a teenager. I cannot imagine what went through her mind when she witnessed such brutality unfolding before her eyes.”
The Berger family’s plea for action reverberates across borders as they implore world leaders and humanitarian organizations to exert maximum pressure on Hamas to release the hostages unharmed.
The horrors recounted by survivors and the specter of further abuse demand swift and decisive action to bring an end to this humanitarian crisis.
This article was created using automation technology and was thoroughly edited and fact-checked by one of our editorial staff members