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On Sunday, European leaders expressed their shock and dismay at the newly released video footage by Hamas, which showed Israeli captives Rom Braslavski and Evyatar David, who have been held hostage for nearly 670 days.
French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the condition of the hostages, describing it on social media platform X as an example of Hamas’ “unlimited inhumanity” and criticized it as “appalling cruelty.”
“This is what Hamas embodies,” he added.
This screengrab from a video released on July 31 by Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad, shows a hostage, identified as Rom Braslavski by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum. (/Islamic Jihad Media Office/AFP via Getty Images)
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, in an interview with German publication Bild on Sunday, supported Macron’s sentiments. He reportedly stated that the hostage videos highlight why Hamas should no longer have a role in governing Gaza.
Merz also called on Israel not to block more aid to Gaza in retaliation for the cruelty.
U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy also took to X on Sunday and called the videos “sickening” displays of Hamas “propaganda.”
“Every hostage must be released unconditionally,” he said. “Hamas must disarm and have no control over Gaza.
“Alongside our partners, we are working towards a sustainable peace plan, which must start with an immediate ceasefire, the release of hostages, and the removal of unjust aid restrictions,” added Lammy.
The newly surfaced video of two of the 50 hostages remaining in Gaza emerged around the same time as a visit from White House envoy Steve Witkoff to Israel late last week. While there, he met with leaders and the hostages’ families in Tel Aviv.
Reporting has suggested the U.S. is now pushing for a comprehensive deal that would include a complete ceasefire and the return of all hostages, rather than incremental deals apparently favored by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Families of hostages protest, demanding their release from Hamas captivity in the Gaza Strip, at the plaza known as the hostages square in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Saturday, Aug. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
Witkoff reportedly told the families of the hostages that he believes the U.S. and the other allied nations are helping to mediate the negotiations, that a deal is close to being secured – though this belief has been expressed numerous times to no avail.
Only American hostage Edan Alexander has been released under a deal not previously forged by the Biden and the then-incoming Trump administrations, which saw the release of 33 hostages by March.
