More than a fifth of the nearly 140 Hamas hostages remaining in Gaza have died, with at least 20 more feared dead, according to Israeli military officials.
An internal assessment conducted by the IDF raised the number of hostages from 132 to 136, with intelligence officials concluding that at least 32 had died since the war began, four Israeli military officials told the New York Times.
Most of the hostages who were confirmed dead are believed to have been killed in the terror attack earlier on October 7, which left more than 1,200 Israelis dead, officials said.
Military sources also stated that “unconfirmed intelligence” indicated that at least 20 more hostages may also have been killed either on October 7 or while in custody.
The families of 32 hostages have been informed of the death of their loved ones, according to the report.
It remains unclear whether the bump from 132 hostages to 136 was made to include Israelis Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, who disappeared in Gaza seven years ago, and the bodies of slain IDF soldiers Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin, who were killed in 2014.
The latest estimate from Israel came as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Cairo on Tuesday to help continue negotiations for an Israel-Hamas ceasefire that would see the remaining hostages released.
The US, Egypt and Qatar have pushed for a cease-fire deal in recent weeks that proposed a weeks-long pause in Gaza to allow Hamas to safely release hostages in exchange for the freedom of Palestinian prisoners in Israel.
At least 32 of the estimated 136 hostages held in Gaza have been confirmed dead, Israeli officials said. ABIR SULTAN/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock French officials hold a press conference on the hostages, including Amit Esther Buskila, 28. REUTERS
The outline of the deal has been proposed to Israeli and Hamas leaders, who continue to mull over the details. While in Cairo, Blinken will likely receive an update on Hamas’s response, as its leadership has also convened in Egypt to discuss the terms of the deal.
Hamas has previously said it will not release hostages until Israel frees all its Palestinian prisoners, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he will not release thousands of prisoners in exchange for hostages.
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Netanyahu has also rejected proposals for a peaceful solution to the war, vowing that the fighting in Gaza will only end when the terrorist group Hamas is eliminated.
Israelis continue to hold protests in Tel Aviv demanding their government do whatever it takes to free the hostages. REUTERS The hostages have been in Gaza for almost four months. Reuters
The prime minister’s position, however, appears to be at odds with many Israelis, with a recent poll from the Viterbi Family Center for Public Opinion and Policy Research at the Israel Democracy Institute finding that a majority of people want their country to prioritize the release of the hostages over defeating Hamas.
A poll of more than 760 people published on Tuesday showed that about 51% believed the main goal of the war was to free the hostages in Gaza, while only around a third believed defeating Hamas should be the priority.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
