Nili Margalit: "Kidnappers demanded I tell Yarden Bibas his wife and children were dead"

Nili Margalit, who was abducted by terrorists from Kibbutz Nir-Oz and released from captivity on November 30, gave an interview to Channel 12's Uvda. She talked about her experience in Hamas tunnels and how the captors informed Yarden Bibas about the death of his wife and children.

According to Margalit, the terrorists initially told her she would be released in a few hours but then demanded that she, along with another hostage, Yoram Metzger, inform Yarden Bibas that his wife Shiri and sons, 4-year-old Ariel and 9-month-old Kfir, were dead.

Margalit recounts that she immediately refused. "I told Yoram: if they want to deliver such horrible news, let them do it themselves. Let them look him in the eyes and tell him," she said. Eventually, Yoram Mezger agreed to tell Yarden the terrorists' message. "They were filming the whole time. They told him 'we are making a video,' and then dictated what he should say." This video was released on November 29 by the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades. After this, Nili Margalit was taken out of the tunnel.

There were other hostages in the tunnel where Nili Margalit, Yarden Bibas, and Yoram Mezger were held. Nili, a nurse by profession, recounts that the kidnappers brought a blood pressure monitor into the tunnel. She measured the blood pressure of the captives in the morning and evening. Nili Margalit recalls being shocked when she saw results "218/120" on the blood pressure monitor. According to her, immediate medical attention is required for a person with blood pressure this high. Nili Margalit recounts that she managed to persuade the kidnappers to give people medication.

Once, Nili Margalit visited another underground complex connected by tunnels to where she was held. She was told that one person needed her help, and then she was led to a room where Amiram Kupfer, Avraham Munder, and Margalit Moses were. Amiram Kupfer had very low blood pressure, so she administered IV therapy, which helped improve his condition.

Nili Margalit recounts that before her release, she gave Yarden Bibas detailed instructions on what medications should be given to the remaining Israelis with him.