Hamas taunts Israel hostages Sagui Dekel-Chen and Matan Zanguaker with gifts
Hamas gifted a newly released Israeli-American hostage a gold coin to “celebrate” the birth of his daughter which he missed as he spent nearly 500 days in captivity while handing an hourglass to taunt the mother of a hostage who remains in the terror group’s control.
The cruel gifts were given to hostages Sagui Dekel-Chen, 36, and Yair Horn, 46, during the propaganda-heavy hostage release in the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Yunis on Saturday.
Dekel-Chen, a dual Israel-US citizen, was gifted a gold coin in the wake of his daughter Shachar Mazal’s birth last year, Israel War Room reported.
He alongside Horn and Russian-Israeli citizen Sasha Troufanov were taken hostage from their homes in the Kibbutz Nir Or by Hamas terrorists during the group’s attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
Dekel-Chen’s pregnant wife Avital and his older two daughters hid in a safe room in their house before he returned to defend the kibbutz.
Avital was seven months pregnant at the time of the abduction and gave birth in December 2023.
The father of three, who has family living in Connecticut, learned of his daughter’s birth when he was handed over to Israeli Officials Saturday.
“I’m great, I’m great, I have a daughter,” he told Israel broadcast network Channel 12 when asked about his medical condition.
Dekel-Chen was the second Israeli-American released behind Keith Siegel.
He was reunited with Avital at an Israeli hospital on Saturday.
Horn, 46, was forced to hold an hourglass attached to a green base fixed with a photo of Israeli hostage Matan Zangauker and his mother Einav.
“Time is running out,” the inscription on the base reads, according to the Times of Israel.
The symbol was displayed at the center of a table on stage during the release ceremony.
The hourglass is believed to be intended for Zangauker’s mother, who has been a central figure in getting the hostages taken from Israel returned to their homes after the war broke out nearly 500 days ago.
Zangauker, 25, was also taken from Kibbutz Nir Or alongside his girlfriend Ilana Gritzewsky during the deadly attack.
Gritzewsky, 30, was freed by Hamas in November.
Zangauker was featured in a hostage video in December 2024.
The terror group has used the hourglass symbol in some of their psychological terror videos, the Jerusalem Post reported.
Zangauker was not listed as the initial 33 hostages to be released during the first phase of the cease-fire that was brokered between the terror group and Israel that began on Jan. 19.
The cease-fire was put in jeopardy earlier this week when Hamas threatened to postpone Saturday’s hostage release accusing Israel of refusing to allow shelter supplies into the Gaza Strip.
Fears of the Middle East returning to an all out war were squashed when Hamas agreed to release the three hostages Saturday.
The deal cease-fire remained in tact after Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave the terror group an ultimatum to free all 67 hostages by noon Saturday, or “hell” would break loose in Gaza
