Eitan Mor: Hamas Filmed Me Dozens of Times but Never Released a Video

Former hostage Eitan Mor says Hamas terrorists filmed him dozens of times during his captivity in Gaza but never released a single video, The Yeshiva World reports. He believes the reason lies with his father. Tzvika Mor refused to take part in the demonstrations demanding a hostage deal and opposed ending the war at any cost.

Mor spoke on Kan 11's Taboo program with Israeli television personality Hanoch Daum, according to The Yeshiva World. Daum asked whether his captors had recorded videos of him. "Dozens of times, but they never released anything," Mor answered. Asked why the recordings never came out, he said his father's absence from the protests made the videos less useful to Hamas. "Because my father didn't go to the demonstrations. So what was the point?" Mor said. "They saw that my father was against that decision, against ending the war at any cost. So why waste a video of me? They released every video at the right time, before a demonstration."

The Yeshiva World reports that Mor's account offers a look at how Hamas used hostage videos as psychological warfare, timed to coincide with demonstrations in Israel and to raise pressure on the government during negotiations. By his telling, the terrorists chose their moments with care to get the most impact on Israeli society.

The conversation then turned to the public criticism his father faced during his captivity. Many hostage families joined demonstrations calling for an immediate agreement, while Tzvika Mor publicly opposed any deal that required Israel to end the war regardless of the consequences, The Yeshiva World reports. Daum raised the hard question that followed Tzvika in that period: how could a father whose son was held hostage oppose a deal that might bring him home?

Eitan Mor defended his father without hesitation. "First of all, in my opinion, my father did the bravest thing possible, and the nationally correct thing," he said. "Because my father was also thinking about the future." He contrasted that with those who demanded release on any terms. "The people who said, 'Bring the hostages home now,' were thinking only about the moment," Mor said. "And then what happens afterward?"

The interview was part of a special episode of Taboo with four survivors of Hamas captivity, The Yeshiva World reports. They spoke about their time in Gaza, their return to Israel and the work of rebuilding their lives. For Mor, his father's stand was an act of courage rooted in concern for Israel's future.