Putin Urges Russians Captured By Hamas To Thank The Militants

One of them spent 498 days in captivity.

Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed expressing gratitude to the militants who captured them during a meeting with former hostages of the Islamist group Hamas,The Moscow Times.

Alexander Trufanov, his mother Elena, grandmother Irena Tatti, and fiancée Sapir Cohen were kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz on the border with the Gaza Strip during an attack on October 7, 2023. The man was shot in both legs, and his father Vitaly was killed. The militants freed the three women in November 2023, and Trufanov himself in February 2025. He spent 498 days in captivity.

Putin told the former hostages that a “big misfortune” had befallen them, but refused to give a “political assessment of the events that are happening” in the Middle East. He also took credit for their release from captivity.

“The fact that you are now free is the result of Russia having stable, long-term relations with the Palestinian people, with their representatives, with a variety of organizations. And I think we need to express words of gratitude to the political leadership of Hamas for meeting us halfway and carrying out this humanitarian act — releasing you. I want to congratulate you on this,” Putin said.

On the eve of the release of 29-year-old Trufanov, Hamas announced that he would be released as a “sign of respect for Russia’s position on Palestine.” Along with him, the militants handed over 36-year-old US and Israeli citizen Sagi Dekel-Hen and 46-year-old Israeli Yair Horn. In exchange, Israel released 369 Palestinian prisoners and detainees. 36 of them were serving life sentences.

Trufanov is a native of Rostov-on-Don. He immigrated to Israel in the late 1990s with his family, served in the army, graduated from Ben-Gurion University and worked as an engineer. He learned of his father's murder by militants only after his release from captivity.

Israel and Hamas reached an agreement on a temporary ceasefire in mid-January. The group was supposed to release 33 Israeli hostages in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. The first stage of the deal ended on March 1. After that, the parties failed to agree on extending the agreement.

On the night of March 18, Israel resumed hostilities in the Gaza Strip. Hamas still holds 59 hostages. According to the IDF, at least 35 of them are dead.

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