Israel will not turn a blind eye to the sight of the three exhausted Israeli hostages being taken to a stage where they are forced to give an apparently staged interview to members of "Hamas" before being released. This was said by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, quoted by Reuters.
"We will not remain silent about the shocking scenes we saw today," he said.
Israeli President Yitzhak Herzog described the release ceremony as cynical and vicious. "This is what a crime against humanity looks like," he said, BTA reports.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) meanwhile announced that the three hostages in the Gaza Strip, who were freed earlier in the day by Palestinian radicals, have already been transferred by the Israeli military to Israeli territory, the agencies reported.
"Just recently escorted by the IDF, the three released hostages Or Levi, Ohad Ben-Ami and Eliyagu (Eli) Sharabi were transferred to Israeli territory," the Israeli army said.
Exhausted and disoriented, the three Israeli hostages were forced by their "Hamas" captors to speak on a makeshift stage in central Gaza during the exchange ceremony.
Ohad Ben-Ami, Eli Sharabi and Or Levi were taken to a makeshift stage in the central Gaza city of Deir al-Balah and questioned in Hebrew by a masked fighter in front of a watching crowd before being handed over to the Red Cross. An AFP journalist at the scene said all three were pale and emaciated, with Ben-Ami needing support to get off the stage.
As the interviews concluded, the movement's fighters began chanting "Allahu Akbar!" ("God is greatest!").
Before the exchange, hundreds of "Hamas" fighters and spectators gathered in the streets of Deir al-Balah, enthusiastically trying to create a triumphant atmosphere despite the devastation caused to the Palestinian territory during the more than year-long war.
A banner at the edge of the stage declared "total victory" for Hamas in Hebrew and featured images of destroyed and rusted Israeli military vehicles.
A photo of Benjamin Netanyahu, dejected and with his head resting thoughtfully on his palm, was displayed in the center of the destruction. Next to the stage, fighters demonstrated the group's heavy weaponry, including grenade launchers, snipers and heavy machine guns.
Exciting battle music blared from loudspeakers around the platform, AFP noted.