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'They beat me, humiliated me': Ex-hostage describes traumatic captivity in Gaza. In Spanish, she said, “I am also here today as a Mexican woman, because that is where I was born, where the cartels kill and torture people."
JPost ^ | 8.27.25

Posted on 09/01/2025 5:26:06 PM PDT by Words Matter

Former Gaza hostage Ilana Gritzewsky recalled in a Wednesday UN Security Council meeting that during her captivity, when she was moved locations, she was forced to walk hand in hand with a terrorist as if she were his wife, so nobody would notice she was a hostage.

“They grabbed me by the hair, hit me in the stomach, causing me to lose my breath. They dragged me across the floor, lifted me, and threw me against the wall. They pointed guns at me, hit me, and tried to film me with my phone.

"I raised my hands, told them I was Mexican, begged them not to hurt me, not to rape me, not to shoot me, just to let me go. The only thing I could think of was having my family see me end my life like this. The terrorists beat me, humiliated me, touched me all over, threw me on a motorcycle, and took me into Gaza.”

While she was on the way to Gaza, she lost consciousness when the captors began to touch her and sexually abuse her. She woke up lying naked on rocks surrounded by the Hamas terrorists. To prevent them from assaulting her, she told them she was on her period. They then threw a hijab at her.

While in captivity, she lost 12 kg (24 lbs) in 55 days. While the hostages were fed 10 chickpeas or a piece of dry flat bread a day, the terrorists had meat, rice, and vegetables, which they ate in front of the captives.

She recalled that the captors would wake up the hostages in the middle of the night for cruel interrogations.

The terrorists who held her did not wear Hamas uniforms. One of them said he was a math teacher, and the other was a lawyer.

At one point in her captivity, she was held in Nasser Hospital with other hostages, in an area of the hospital that only Hamas terrorists could enter.

While in captivity, she learned her boyfriend, Matan Zangauker, who Hamas is still holding, was also a captive. She begged her captors to see him. The terrorists kept giving her tasks to do, saying that if she did them, she would be able to see him later. “Later never came. I did not get to see Matan,” Gritzewsky said.

Her captors cruelly played with her emotions. At one point, she was told she was being taken home, but instead, she was brought to a tunnel where several other hostages were held, including David Cunio, who is still a hostage.

Gritzewsky's aliyah to Israel. Gritzewsky told the council that she made aliyah by herself, to be in a safe country, “free of delinquents and cartels.”

“Leaving everything wasn’t easy, but I knew I was on the right path,” she said.

She called on human rights groups and “everyone who claims to care” to raise their voices and stand up for those still held in captivity.

“Why is our pain treated as less? Why are our histories questioned, erased? I am here not for myself, but for every woman and man who did not make it home. For every voice that was ignored. For the 50 hostages still in Gaza.”

In Spanish, she said, “I am also here today as a Mexican woman, because that is where I was born, where the cartels kill and torture people.

“They call them as they are - terrorists, criminals, delinquents. The world doesn’t hesitate to condemn them, so that's why I wonder why Hamas, which burns children alive, rapes women, mutilates bodies, kidnaps children and adults, why are they not condemned in the same way? Why is Hamas considered differently? Why is it not considered the terrorist group that it is? Why are Jewish groups questioned when others are immediately believed? It's not just hypocrisy, it is betrayal.”

“I was released after 55 days, but my soul remains with the 50 hostages still in Gaza.”


TOPICS: Egypt; Extended News; Hamas; Hezbollah; Iran; Israel; Lebanon; Mexico; Qatar; Syria; War on Terror; Yemen
KEYWORDS: arabracism; arabs; cair; egypt; gaza; hamas; hezbollah; houthis; ilanagritzewsky; ilhanomar; iran; islamofascism; israel; jewhatersonfr; jews; jihad; lebanon; matanzangauker; mexico; multilingual; muslims; partygirl; qatar; rapejihad; rashaidatlaib; syria; waronterror; yemen
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1 posted on 09/01/2025 5:26:06 PM PDT by Words Matter
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To: Words Matter

I must have overlooked some data.
If this young woman is Mexican, then what is she doing anywhere near Gaza? Was that remarked on?


2 posted on 09/01/2025 5:35:36 PM PDT by lee martell
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To: Words Matter
The world doesn’t hesitate to condemn them, so that's why I wonder why Hamas Democrats, which burns children alive, rapes women, mutilates bodies, kidnaps children and adults, why are they not condemned in the same way?
3 posted on 09/01/2025 5:38:28 PM PDT by Enterprise ( These people have no honor, no belief, no poetry, no art, no humor, no patriotism.)
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To: lee martell

Maybe she was that musical festival which the Gazans attacked? Shani Louk was there from, I think, Germany.


4 posted on 09/01/2025 5:43:05 PM PDT by BenLurkin (The above is not a statement of fact. It is opinion or satire. Or both.)
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To: lee martell
From the article: Gritzewsky's aliyah to Israel. Gritzewsky told the council that she made aliyah by herself, to be in a safe country, “free of delinquents and cartels.”

I'm trying to figure out the Slavic name but being from Mexico, unless her Dad married a Mexican woman.

5 posted on 09/01/2025 5:43:51 PM PDT by KarlInOhio (I refuse to call the left "progressive" because I do not see slavery to the government as progress.)
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To: Enterprise

Exactly!


6 posted on 09/01/2025 5:49:07 PM PDT by No name given ( Anonymous is who you’ll know me as )
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To: Words Matter

The world hates God, and therefore hates Israel. This is why so many don’t condemn Hamass and blame Israel.


7 posted on 09/01/2025 5:55:28 PM PDT by vpintheak (Screw the ChiComms! America first!)
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To: lee martell

“If this young woman is Mexican, then what is she doing anywhere near Gaza?

They mention that she made aliyah, which means a Jew from the diaspora anywhere in the world, immigrating to Israel.


8 posted on 09/01/2025 6:05:56 PM PDT by BeauBo
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To: lee martell

The president of Mexico is a Jewish woman.


9 posted on 09/01/2025 6:17:15 PM PDT by Ge0ffrey
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To: BeauBo

“aliyah”. I saw the word, but since it was not capitalized in the article, I didn’t think it was of significance. Wrong.

Even with that being said, surely she must be aware of the wars and rumors of wars going on in that hot spot right now.
She got a Tourist’s Visa, spent a great deal of money and flew straight into the snake pit. She is lucky to have survived.


10 posted on 09/01/2025 6:18:10 PM PDT by lee martell
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To: KarlInOhio
I'm trying to figure out the Slavic name but being from Mexico, unless her Dad married a Mexican woman.

There are lots of non-Latin names in Mexico, and throughout Latin America, immigrants from around the world. People do immigrate to other places besides the United States.

11 posted on 09/01/2025 6:50:03 PM PDT by fidelis (Ecce Crucem Domini! Fugite partes adversae! Vicit Leo de tribu Juda, Radix David! Alleluia!)
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To: fidelis
There are lots of non-Latin names in Mexico, and throughout Latin America, immigrants from around the world.

Half a century ago when I studied Spanish lessons, my Spanish teacher told us of a town in Mexico full of thousands of people named Johnson that he visited. He told us to always respect the names of people in Mexico, because they don't always sound Mexican but they are considered to be Mexicans. Immigrants got assimilated there over centuries, just like in other countries.

12 posted on 09/01/2025 7:22:27 PM PDT by roadcat ( )
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To: AdmSmith; AnonymousConservative; Arthur Wildfire! March; Berosus; Bockscar; BraveMan; cardinal4; ...

13 posted on 09/01/2025 7:56:14 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (NeverTrumpin' -- it's not just for DNC shills anymore -- oh, wait, yeah it is.)
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To: fidelis
There are lots of non-Latin names in Mexico, and throughout Latin America, immigrants from around the world. People do immigrate to other places besides the United States.

Like Claudia Sheinbaum, the current President of Mexico?

14 posted on 09/01/2025 8:47:20 PM PDT by chaosagent ( )
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To: Ge0ffrey

Good point


15 posted on 09/01/2025 8:53:09 PM PDT by wardaddy (This forum has seen better days z)
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To: lee martell

The body count in Mexico is exponentially higher
Just saying
Mexico drug wars past 20 years up to 400,000 dead
Israel Palestine conflict since 1947
10,000 Israelis
110,000 Palestinians a chunk of them recently depending who’s counting


16 posted on 09/01/2025 8:57:37 PM PDT by wardaddy (This forum has seen better days z)
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To: wardaddy

400K dead in Mexican drug wars. OMG.
Seems incredible that it is seldom discussed by anyone.
That may even be a low estimate.


17 posted on 09/01/2025 9:19:36 PM PDT by lee martell
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To: vpintheak

Sadly


18 posted on 09/02/2025 1:11:36 PM PDT by Words Matter
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To: roadcat; All

Maybe her maiden name was Garcia/Sanchez/Gonzalez???


19 posted on 09/02/2025 1:13:12 PM PDT by Words Matter
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To: Words Matter

What else can you expect when you voluntarily hang out with Islamic Terrorists? Do you think they give a damn about you or your virtue signaling? They do not consider your experience as equal to theirs. They couldn’t care less about you.


20 posted on 09/02/2025 1:23:55 PM PDT by jpp113
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