Wealthy Israelis offer rewards for release of Gaza hostages

Nevin Al Sukari - Sana'a - An protester carries a portrait of Nimrod Cohen, an Israeli hostage held by Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza, during an anti-government demonstration in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv, on October 19, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip between Israel and the Palestinian militant Hamas movement. — AFP pic

JERUSALEM, Oct 22 — Frustrated with the dwindling prospect of reaching a ceasefire deal in the year-long Gaza war, some Israeli entrepreneurs have sought a different avenue to release hostages—offering a financial reward for those who choose to free them.

Former SodaStream CEO Daniel Birnbaum told AFP yesterday he had received around 100 calls after announcing on social media platform X that he would give US$100,000 (RM432,550) in cash or bitcoin to “anyone who delivers from Gaza a living Israeli prisoner”.

The former chairman of the Israel-based soda company added that his offer was valid until “midnight Wednesday”.

Birnbaum said most of the calls are pranks, threats or curses, but “10 to 20 could be legitimate” and were transferred to Israeli authorities for further verification.

He said the people who called him were “more concerned with getting out (of Gaza) than with the money”.

With so many hostages, Birnbaum said, some civilians unaffiliated to Hamas must have information on the captives’ whereabouts.

“There might be civilians who think enough is enough and they want to live,” he said.

Militants took 251 people hostage during the October 7, 2023 attack orchestrated by Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas.

Of those, 97 still remain held in Gaza, including 34 who Israeli officials say are dead.

The Hamas attack resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official Israeli figures.

Israel’s retaliatory campaign has so far killed at least 42,603 people in Gaza, the majority civilians, according to data from the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory, figures the UN considers reliable.

“I’m not expecting to get everyone back (but) I’d be delighted if we got back just one hostage,” Birnbaum said.

He said he didn’t “ask for permission” from the Israeli government.

“I think the element of a financial reward should come from the private sector, let’s see if it works. Whatever we have been doing until now, its not working,” he added.

Flyers

Upon hearing of Birnbaum’s initiative, Israeli-American real estate developer David Hager also began raising money.

He told Israel’s Channel 12 on Sunday that he had already gathered some US$400,000 with help from friends.

Each of them “offered in US$100,000”, he said, calling on to other businessmen to contribute in order to reach US$10 million.

Hager, who made his fortune in the United States, said “there are IT guys here who have made huge sums, and this is small money for them”.

Following the recent death of Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that Palestinians who laid down their weapons and brought back captives would live.

Flyers dropped above Gaza by the Israeli army in the following days also guaranteed that “whoever lays down their arms and returns the hostages will be able to leave (Gaza)... in peace”.

The Israeli army has been air dropping thousands of such flyers since the beginning of the war, asking for information about hostages.

But these calls have little chances of success, Palestinian affairs expert Michael Milshtein of Tel Aviv University’s Moshe Dayan Center told AFP.

“There could be one, two, or three cases, but we’re not going to see roads full of people ready to accept this offer,” he said.

Muhammad al-Najjar, a resident of northern Gaza who fled to the southern city of Khan Yunis to escape an ongoing Israeli military operation, told AFP that such offers from the Israeli army were bound to fail.

“As a people, we don’t pay attention to anything the (Israeli army) publishes or distributes,” he said, adding that some people use the flyers as kindle for fires in the shortage-stricken coastal territory.

Najjar, 33, said he believes that “Hamas will not agree to release the hostages without something in return” and pointed to the necessity of a negotiated ceasefire deal to guarantee that the captives are freed.

During a one-week truce in November last year, 105 hostages were released, among them 80 Israelis in exchange for 240 Palestinian prisoners.

All attempts to reach a new ceasefire have failed since, with both sides trading blame for stalling talks. — AFP