"My parents fought for me like crazy"

Hostage: I told Hamas I'd stay ten years

In first interview since release, Or reveals he opposed a deal at any price, breaking with his parents' public campaign • I told my captors: you'll realize I'm not worth it to you

Eliana Fleming

OCT 7, 2026 00:28

2 min read

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Released hostage Avinatan Or gave his first interview since coming home from Hamas captivity, and revealed a position on the hostage deal sharply at odds with that of his parents, who campaigned publicly against a "deal at any price."

Speaking to Channel 12's 'Uvda' program, Or was unequivocal: "The argument was about saving lives, whether you save them now or also later. It was clear to me that if we do a deal now, I get out, but down the line someone else sits here in my place."

"It was clear to me we shouldn't do a deal at any price. That Israel needs to come out of this war victorious," Or added.

Or shared a conversation he had with his Hamas captors during his time in Gaza: "I told the guard: I'll stay here a day, two days, a year, two years, even ten years. In the end you'll realize I'm not worth it to you, and that will be the victory."

Later in the interview, Avinatan recounted his first conversation with his parents when he met them at Re'im base an hour after his release: "When they saw me they said, 'We hope you're not angry at us.' I answered them: 'I'm not angry at you, I'm proud of you.' My parents fought for me. My parents fought for me like crazy."

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