'I wasn't beaten' in Gaza: Former captive denies Israeli media reports
Noa Argamani, recently released from captivity in Gaza, says she was not beaten and didn't have her hair cut, countering Israeli media misinformation.
Israeli Noa Argamani, who was abducted with others from the Nova music festival during Hamas's October 7 attack on southern Israel that triggered the war, attends a meeting with G7 embassy representatives during a visit to Tokyo on August 21, 2024. / Photo: AFP
A former Israeli captive in Gaza denied reports suggesting that she had been beaten and had her hair cut while in detention.
In an Instagram post on Friday, Noa Argamani said: "I can't ignore what has been going on in the media here in the last 24 hours, things are out of context.”
"They (Palestinians) didn't beat me and didn't cut my hair. I was in a building (in Gaza) that was blown up by the (Israeli) Air Force," she stressed.
She said her actual words were as follows: "This weekend, after the shooting, as I said, I had cuts all over my head, and hit my whole body."
"I emphasise that they (Palestinians) didn’t hit me, but I was hurt all over my body from the collapse of the structure on me," she added.
She added, referring to the start of hostilities last year: "As a victim of the 7th of October, I will not allow myself to be a victim again by the media."
🇮🇱ISRAELI HOSTAGE SLAMS MEDIA LIES
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) August 23, 2024
Following reports in Israeli media that she had been beaten by guards during her time in captivity, Noa Argamani posted a strong rebuttal:
“They didn't beat me, and they didn't cut my hair.
I was in a building that was bombed by the Air… pic.twitter.com/fz6Hxxdh9w
'It's a miracle'
Her comments were referring to a statement she made to Japanese diplomats in Tokyo on Thursday.
She said Israeli media outlets misinterpreted her testimony, claiming she had been beaten and had her hair cut while in captivity in Gaza.
Argamani said earlier it was a "miracle” she was still alive after captivity in Gaza.
"Every night, I was falling asleep and thinking, this may be the last night of my life," she said in English at the meeting in Tokyo. "Until the moment I was [rescued]… I just did not believe that I'm still surviving."
She met with Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa on Thursday and spoke of her experience.
"And in this moment that I’m still sitting with you, it’s a miracle that I’m here. It’s a miracle because I survived October 7, and I survived [Israeli] bombing, and I survived also the rescue," Argamani said of the complicated release.
She added, "Avinatan, my boyfriend, is still there, and we need to bring them back before it’s going to be too late."
On June 8, the Israeli army managed to free four captives, including Argamani, in a special operation in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza.
According to Israeli public broadcaster KAN, there are currently 109 Israeli hostages in Gaza, of whom 36 are believed to no longer be alive.
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