MKs, Mengistu Family Call for Action to Retrieve Hamas Hostage

Jerusalem, 2 January, 2017 (TPS) -- The family of Abera Mengistu, who is suspected to be held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, met with supporters on Sunday at their home in Ashkelon to protest government inaction about obtaining his release.

The protest, attended by approximately 40 people including MKs Oren Hazan (Likud), Ksenia Svetlova and Yehiel “Hilik” Bar (Zionist Union), was organized following Sunday’s  Cabinet meeting that addressed various initiatives to put pressure on Hamas to return the bodies of soldiers Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin. Avraham Neguise (Likud), the only current MK from the Ethiopian community, was scheduled to attend but cancelled at the last minute.

In a statement to Tazpit Press Service (TPS), Ilan Mengistu, Abera’s brother deplored the inadequate coverage of his brother’s plight.

“Media coverage of the Cabinet meeting only dealt with getting the bodies [of Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin] back, while the humanitarian concern of my brother was only mentioned in the sidelines, if at all”

Mengistu, a 28-year-old civilian from Ashkelon, crossed the border into Gaza in September 2014, through the Zikim beach for unknown reasons. He has been missing ever since. Hamas’ spokespeople refute the family statements claiming that Avraham is mentally unstable. They claim he was captured as a prisoner of war.

“My brother, Abera, has been held by the organization Hamas for more than 840 days, far from his country and his family and only on Sunday did the Cabinet decided to convene to talk about it. It reveals much about their real intention, as part of their roles and moral responsibility, to return an innocent man home,” stated Ilana Mengistu to TPS.  

“We must spread the word with our head held high that Israel has a humanitarian duty to bring back Abera. Hamas prisoners should not be allowed family visits and demanding from the world humanitarian assistance for the Gaza Strip while they are still holding my brother,, an innocent citizen who has never borne arms and who is utterly unrelated to the conflict surrounding us,” he argued.

The Security Cabinet met on Sunday to discuss possible initiatives to put pressure on Hamas to return the bodies of Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin, killed during the 2014 Operation Protective Edge. The Cabinet ruled that the bodies of Hamas operatives  killed during attacks will not be returned to Gaza but buried instead.

Both the Goldin and Shaul families criticized the decision. The Shaul family said they were tired of talking and were waiting for the prime minister to implement the decision with practical actions that demonstrate leadership.

The Goldin family added that “they would not reward people who decided to act too little and too late.”

The Mengistu family, along with the families of soldiers Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin whose bodies are also in the hands of Hamas, have called for a tightening of conditions for Hamas prisoners in Israeli jails. They also denounced the last June’s Israel-Turkey reconciliation deal for failing to include specific clauses about their children.

“We expect you to care about all people no matter who they are. We will eventually put a stop to the government’s silence on the issue, enough of explanations and arguments. Those are just excuses for inaction,” concluded Ilan Mengistu.