The family of hostage Bipin Joshi, already extremely concerned, are even more worried for Bipin’s life after hearing about the recovery of the body of slain Thai hostage Nattapong Pinta this week, Joshi’s sister Pushpa told The Jerusalem Post on Monday.

Pushpa, Bipin’s 17-year-old younger sister, stressed that the family does not know anything about his status and that the last sign of life they received was a video from Shifa Hospital in Gaza, released by the IDF in November 2023.

The family does not know “if he is getting food or if he is getting medicine,” she said. “We don’t know anything.”

Twenty-four-year-old Bipin was an agriculture student who came to Israel to study just three weeks before the October 7 attack.

“He’s an innocent soul, a very hardworking person, and a helpful person also. He saved his friends, too,” his sister said. On October 7, 2023, Bipin threw a grenade away from the group of people he was sheltering with, later organizing a group to help those wounded, the Hostage Family Forum said.

FAMILY MEMBERS and others demonstrate on the 600th day of captivity, calling for the release of the hostages, last Wednesday, in Tel Aviv. (credit: TOMER NEUBERG/FLASH90)
FAMILY MEMBERS and others demonstrate on the 600th day of captivity, calling for the release of the hostages, last Wednesday, in Tel Aviv. (credit: TOMER NEUBERG/FLASH90)
Bipin’s sister described him as a religious person who believed in God. “He liked to play guitar. He liked to play music,” she said, adding that he even wrote a song about agriculture.

Asked how she is doing currently, when Bipin has been held captive for more than 600 days, Pushpa said that it’s the rainy season in Nepal, a time when she and Bipin would play guitar and sing songs together. They also enjoyed dancing outside in the rain.

“I miss him every day in every second, every minute. We used to work out together. We used to play football together in the winter season. I miss him a lot. Every day, we talked a lot, and he taught me lots of things, lots of ideas, and he always pushed me forward,” she said, adding that Bipin was an excellent big brother.

Now, after Bipin’s abduction, “everything has changed,” said Pushpa, adding that now she feels “like I am nothing without him.”

She said that she is depressed and feeling mentally weak. “If I try to be happy, suddenly I remember,” she said, adding that this brings her immense pain.

Bipin not only provided Pushpa with a sense of safety and security, but he was also someone she could talk to and share ideas with. Now, she feels insecure when leaving her home. “The condition of my parents is also most critical. They are mentally depressed and mentally feel tortured,” she said, explaining that Bipin is their only son. “He is their whole future.”

“I see their condition every day. It hurts me a lot. I see the deep pain,” she said, adding that Bipin “is everything for me and my whole family.”

Support from Israel

Pushpa described the support the family is getting from Israel, noting they have the same rights as Israeli hostage families and that the IDF updates them whenever there is anything new.

She also highlighted and expressed her gratitude for the support the family receives from Israelis. “They are going [out] in the street and holding my brother’s photos, and they are standing for my brother,” she said, adding that “many people are praying” for Bipin.

Pushpa asked that state leaders and people in Israel and around the world “do whatever you can. Please help fight for my brother and help my brother to be released safely.”

“Bipin Joshi is an innocent soul,” she stressed, adding that he went to Israel to learn skills so that he could apply them in his own country.

“Our whole family is waiting for good news. Our whole family is waiting for a ceasefire.” She stressed that she is hopeful and faithful. “One day I will be able to see my brother released safely, and I will be able to meet my brother very soon.”