The family of a Nepalese man held captive by the Palestinian group Hamas has appealed to his captors to release him, stressing that he has no connection to the conflict in Gaza.
Bipin Joshi, now 25, was one of 17 Nepalese students studying agriculture in southern Israel when Hamas attacked on October 7, 2023, triggering the Gaza war.
Mr Joshi worked hard to enter a government competition to get the chance to study in Israel, said his 17-year-old sister Pushpa Joshi, who lives in Kathmandu.
He arrived in southern Israel just three weeks before the attack, his first trip outside Nepal.
“Bipin Joshi is an innocent agriculture student,” Pushpa said. “He is a young man with a long life ahead of him and he is only 25 years old.”
The attack left militants dead at least 10 Nepalese students and wounded six others.
Mr Joshi saved several lives by throwing a live grenade from the shelter where they were hiding before he was kidnapped and taken to Gaza, his sister said.
His family has had no news of him since Israel received CCTV footage from a Gaza hospital showing Mr Joshi, so they are confident he was brought alive to Gaza, but have had no information on his condition since.
Pushpa, who was 15 when her brother was captured, lives with her parents in western Nepal.
She regularly spends eight hours on the bus to Kathmandu to persuade officials to secure her brother's release.
She managed to meet with the Prime Minister and the President of the country several times.
The Nepalese government says it has repeatedly sought support from Qatari and Egyptian officials to help secure Mr Joshi's release.
“He is alive and we sincerely believe that he will return safe and sound,” Pushpa said. “We have high hopes for his return.”
In the October 7 attack, Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took 251 hostages.
They currently hold 53 hostages, of whom about 20 are believed to be alive. Most of the rest have been released as part of ceasefires or other deals.
Israeli Liberation Forces
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
