The family of a young German woman who appeared in graphic footage widely circulating on social media have spoken of their "nightmare" after Hamas militants paraded her around slumped on the floor of a pick-up truck.
Video footage showing a woman taken hostage by Hamas militants after an attack on a southern Israeli music festival quickly spread online, with the woman lying face-down in the back of a pick-up truck and her leg twisted at an unnatural angle.
It was unknown if the woman was alive or dead and there has been no official confirmation of what happened to her.
In the video, two Hamas militants have their legs over the woman's body, while chanting, "Allahu akbar," or "God is the greatest," alongside other passengers in the back of the vehicle. Newsweek has not linked to the footage due to its extremely graphic nature.
Family members have now identified the woman as tattoo artist Shani Louk, adding there has been no more information about the fate of the young woman.
Shani Louk's first cousin, Tomasina Weintraub Louk, confirmed to several media outlets that her relative was attending an open-air party close to Kibbutz Urim, east of the border with the Gaza Strip. "We knew she was in the party. She didn't answer," Louk told The Washington Post on Saturday.
"We have heard nothing. We are hoping for positive news," Louk told MailOnline. "It is definitely Shani. She was at a music festival for peace. This is a nightmare for our family."
On Saturday, Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas launched its most deadly attacks on Israel for years, firing rockets from Gaza as its fighters crossed over the border into Israel. Israel then carried out strikes on Gaza, which is controlled by Hamas, declaring Israel was now "at war."
Reports quickly emerged of apparent kidnappings, and an Israeli military spokesperson said "significant number" of Israeli civilians and soldiers were being held hostage in the Gaza Strip, with some presumed dead.
"Women, children, elderly, disabled" civilians were "dragged into Gaza" in "unprecedented" numbers, IDF spokesperson Jonathan Conricus said on Saturday. A "significant number of Israelis," both civilians and military personnel, were being held by Hamas in Gaza, he added.
BREAKING:
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) October 7, 2023
The woman whose body was seen on video in the back of a pick-up truck driven by Palestinian terrorists to Gaza has been identified.
30-year-old Shani Louk was a German citizen visiting Israel to attend the music festival for peace held near the Gaza border fence. pic.twitter.com/sPIc8FRs8K
Some are thought to be alive, but others are presumed dead, he said, adding that this will "shape the future of this war."
Hamas spokesperson Abu Obeida said Hamas had "dozens of captive officers and soldiers," adding: "They have been secured in safe places and in the resistance tunnels" in the Gaza Strip.
The deputy chief of Hamas' political wing, Saleh al-Arouri, told Al Jazeera that Hamas had "managed to kill and capture many Israeli soldiers," and that the number of Israeli hostages Hamas had captured was enough to release all Palestinian fighters in Israeli custody.
The graphic footage showing the woman's prostrate body was authenticated and geolocated to the area in southern Israel, CNN reported, adding Shani had dual German and Israeli citizenship. Shani's parents have seen the footage circulating online, Tomasina Louk said, adding: "We recognized her by the tattoos, and she has long dreadlocks."
Family members saw the video after an ex-boyfriend of Shani's sent them the video, German outlet Der Spiegel reported.
Shani's mother, Ricarda Louk, told the outlet that her daughter, who lived in Tel Aviv, looked unconscious in the footage.
In a video published online, Ricarda said her daughter, "a German citizen, was kidnapped with a group of tourists in southern Israel by Palestinian Hamas."
"We were sent a video in which I could clearly see our daughter unconscious in the car with the Palestinians and them driving around the Gaza Strip," she said, according to a translation.
Mutter bestätigt: Bei der bewusstlosen Frau, die man auf der Ladefläche eines Autos sah, handelt es sich um die deutsche Shani Louk.
— Miró (@unblogd) October 8, 2023
Sie war auf demselben "Festival for Peace" wie die entführte Noa Argamani.pic.twitter.com/hRK6bGjvIa
"I ask you to send us any help or any news. Thank you very much," she added.
Esther Borochov, who had attended the dance party close to the border with Gaza, told Reuters news agency that she had pretended to be dead until she was rescued.
"I couldn't move my legs," she said from a hospital. "Soldiers came and took us away to the bushes."
Another young woman, named in the media as Noa Argamani, was reportedly kidnapped after attending the 'Festival for Peace" music festival.
