Wealthy Israelis offer rewards for release of Gaza hostages
Former SodaStream CEO Daniel Birnbaum is giving $100,000 in cash or bitcoin to ‘anyone who delivers from Gaza a living Israeli prisoner’
Daily TribuneFormer SodaStream CEO Daniel Birnbaum is giving $100,000 in cash or bitcoin to ‘anyone who delivers from Gaza a living Israeli prisoner’
Attendees hold placards depicting portraits of Israeli hostages during the anniversary commemoration paying tribute to victims of Hamas' 7 October 2023 attacks on Israel, at the Place Bellecour square in Lyon, central-eastern France.
Olivier Chassignole/AFP
JERUSALEM (AFP) — Frustrated with the dwindling prospect of reaching a ceasefire deal in the year-long Gaza war, some Israeli entrepreneurs have sought a different avenue to release hostages — offering a financial reward for those who choose to free them.
Former SodaStream CEO Daniel Birnbaum told Agence France-Presse (afp) Monday he had received around 100 calls after announcing on social media platform X that he would give $100,000 in cash or bitcoin to “anyone who delivers from Gaza a living Israeli prisoner.”
The former chairman of the Israel-based soda company added that his offer was valid until “midnight Wednesday.”
Birnbaum said most of the calls are pranks, threats or curses, but “10 to 20 could be legitimate” and were transferred to Israeli authorities for further verification.
He said the people who called him were “more concerned with getting out (of Gaza) than with the money.”
With so many hostages, Birnbaum said, some civilians unaffiliated to Hamas must have information on the captives’ whereabouts.
“There might be civilians who think enough is enough and they want to live,” he said.
Militants took 251 people hostage during the 7 October 2023 attack orchestrated by Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas.
Of those, 97 still remain held in Gaza, including 34 who Israeli officials say are dead.
The Hamas attack resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official Israeli figures.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign has so far killed at least 42,603 people in Gaza, the majority civilians, according to data from the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory, figures the UN considers reliable.
“I’m not expecting to get everyone back (but) I’d be delighted if we got back just one hostage,” Birnbaum said.
He said he didn’t “ask for permission” from the Israeli government.
“I think the element of a financial reward should come from the private sector, let’s see if it works. Whatever we have been doing until now, its not working,” he added.
