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France is committed to the release of “all French people who have disappeared or are hostages,” Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna assured on Tuesday.
Published on November 28, 2023 3:55 p.m
Reading time: 3 minutes
Participants of the March against Anti-Semitism hold up portraits of Hamas hostages in Paris on November 12, 2023. (LAURE BOYER / HANS LUCAS / AFP)
Three young French people aged 12 to 16 held in the Gaza Strip were released by Hamas on Monday, November 27. This release came as part of an agreement between the Palestinian Islamist movement and Israel, brokered by Qatar, the United States and Egypt.
Five French nationals or people with dual nationality remain missing or are held hostage by Hamas. Franceinfo details what we know about their situation.
Two relatives of the hostages who have already been released and three participants in the techno music festival
The identities of the French nationals missing since the October 7 terrorist attacks are known. Here’s what we know about it.
Ofer KalderonThe 53-year-old is the father of Erez and Sahar, who were released on Monday. On the day of the attack they were in Kibbutz Nir Oz, two kilometers from the Gaza Strip.
Ohad Yahalomi, a 49-year-old French-Israeli, is the father of Eitan, who was also released on Monday. According to Eitan’s mother, Bat-Sheva, he is missing after being injured in the attack.
Mia SchemThe 21-year-old appeared as a prisoner in a video released by Hamas on October 16. In this sequence, filmed under duress, the young woman said she had an injured arm and was in Gaza. She was kidnapped by the terrorists while she was at the Tribe of Nova techno music festival in the Negev desert, which was attended by more than 3,000 people.
Elya Toledano, 27, is a friend of Mia Schem. “We remain fully mobilized to secure the release of Elya Toledano and Mia Shem,” whose fate remains suspended in Hamas “negotiations,” making the wait “unbearable” for their relatives, commented Sacha Ghozlan, lawyer for several hostage families .
Orion Hernandez Radoux, a 30-year-old French-Mexican tourist, was also at the Tribe of Nova festival. He went there with a German friend, Shani Louk, who was killed by the Islamists, her mother told German media station NTV. During the Hamas attack, Orion Hernandez-Radoux initially appeared to have managed to escape by car with another friend, his mother told Le Parisien. “We don’t know how, but we know they were separated,” she said. “Three days later her boyfriend was found dead and taken to Gaza.”
A status of missing persons or hostages about which France maintains silence
Are these five French nationals all alive and in captivity? It’s impossible to know for sure. Catherine Colonna, who was a guest on RTL radio on Tuesday, deliberately remained evasive on the topic. France is committed to the release of “all other French people who have disappeared or are being held hostage,” the Foreign Minister assured. “We need to be able to find them, give them their freedom and return them to their families,” she added. Why then is there still a distinction between missing people and suspected hostages?
“We make this distinction out of caution every time we talk about it. In fact, we have obtained evidence of life for certain missing French people, but not with certainty for others.”
Catherine Colonna, Minister of Foreign Affairs
on RTL
“It is wise to speak of ‘disappeared or hostages’ – of course in the hope that all are hostages and should be released as quickly as possible,” the French diplomatic chief continued. “We are fully mobilized for this.” When asked about the number of French people held hostage, Catherine Colonna also replied: “We don’t want to say.”
A vague statement about possible detentions by groups other than Hamas
Qatar said on Monday that about forty hostages present in Gaza were being held not by Hamas but by Islamic Jihad and other armed groups. Asked about the issue, Catherine Colonna spoke of “other people who have committed heinous abuses.” Are French people among those people who would not put themselves in the hands of Hamas? “We can’t say everything. We are not allowed to say everything,” replied the Foreign Minister.
Whether or not it holds the hostages present in the Palestinian enclave, Hamas bears the responsibility of handing them over to Israel. “He is the interlocutor of Qatar and Israel. It is up to him to bring them together, free them and ensure that everything goes well and in good health,” explained Catherine Colonna.