The mom and sister of hostage Bipin Joshi, a Nepali agricultural volunteer taken captive from Kibbutz Alumim on October 7, landed in Israel on Monday for his or her first go to since their cherished one’s abduction.
Reporters surrounded the pair after they exited customs at Ben Gurion Airport, looking for a primary remark from them.
“Please, rescue my son,” mentioned Joshi’s mom, Padma Joshi, as she broke down in tears. “Hamas, convey [him] again house now. Please, return [him] house, Hamas. Please. Please.”
Joshi’s sister, Pushpa, 17, thanked the Israeli individuals for his or her assist and the federal government officers who flew the household in.
She mentioned that her brother got here to Israel to review as a part of his tutorial program and was caught in a conflict that has nothing to do with him.
“We simply need him again,” she mentioned. “It’s an excessive amount of for me and my household. It’s been nearly two years. We are able to’t assist however take into consideration his situation — what he’s doing there, whether or not he’s getting meals, whether or not he’s getting drugs.”
Ready on the airport for the household have been 4 buddies of Bipin, who studied with him in college in Nepal, got here with him to Israel in September 2023, and have been wounded through the Hamas-led assault on October, however managed to evade captivity.
The president of the Israeli faculty the place Bipin studied agriculture additionally got here to welcome his family members.
Bipin Joshi, a Nepali farming pupil, was taken captive from Kibbutz Alumim on October 7, 2023, by Hamas terrorists. (Courtesy)
“He’s a really curious and really constructive particular person. He all the time had the thought that he needed to do one thing new, and he all the time needed to attempt a number of issues. He additionally cherished music,” one in every of Bipin’s buddies informed the Ynet information website, including that he cherished enjoying guitar and soccer.
Joshi was hiding with different agricultural college students and Thai employees at an outside shelter at Alumim on October 7, and in response to accounts, caught one of many grenades thrown at them and hurled it exterior.
Throughout their go to to Israel, Joshi’s household will go to Alumim the place he lived, meet his buddies and obtain intelligence assessments from authorities officers on his situation.
They’re additionally anticipated to fulfill with President Isaac Herzog, Overseas Minister Gideon Sa’ar, and Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana, in response to an announcement from the Overseas Ministry and the Directorate for Hostages, Lacking Individuals and Returnees on the Prime Minister’s Workplace.
The assertion famous that “since November 2023, no signal of life has been obtained from [Joshi], and there may be deep concern for his life.”
In Might this 12 months, Joshi was amongst three hostages, the others being Tamir Nimrodi and fellow Thai captive Pinta Nattapong, whose fates have been decided by Israel to be unknown.
Nattapong, the one different overseas hostage held in Gaza on the time, was later introduced useless after his physique was recovered in a June IDF operation.
Hamas holds fifty hostages complete, of whom twenty are believed to be alive. Twenty-eight have been confirmed useless by the Israel Protection Forces. The federal government has expressed “grave concern” concerning the fates of two others, understood to be Joshi and Nimrodi.
Occasions of Israel workers contributed to this report.
