Hamas said Russians were among the hostages captured in Israel
The Islamic Resistance Movement (HAMAS) threatens to execute prisoners in response to every Israeli attack on the Gaza Strip, including civilians taken hostage during the October 7 attack.
A radical Palestinian group has said it will execute one hostage at a time in response to new Israeli bombings. In particular, it was about blowing up the houses of civilians.
There are Russians among the hostages
A Hamas spokesman said dozens of people with dual citizenship were among the captives captured in Israel.
The official noted that among them are Russians and Chinese, Reuters reports.
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There has been no confirmation of the information from Russian officials yet. The Russian Embassy in Israel clarified that one Russian died during the attack, four are considered missing.
The day before, it was reported that Hamas soldiers kidnapped about ten girls from the Nature Party electronic music festival near the city of Ofakim, located on the border with the Gaza Strip.
Later, one of the allegedly abducted, Elizaveta Prudnikova, contacted journalists. She denied the information, saying that she did not attend the festival, but her sister was at the event – Elizabeth cannot contact her and does not know her exact location. According to her, neither she nor her sister are Russian citizens.
The Russian Embassy said it would check information about Russian women allegedly abducted by Hamas militants. Information about the captives having Russian citizenship has not yet been confirmed.
The press secretary of the Russian mission to the Palestinian National Authority, Aliya Zaripova, noted that the issue of evacuating Russians from Palestine has not yet been discussed, but it is possible in the future.
Possibility of prisoner exchange
Hamas spokesman Hussam Badran denied the fact of negotiations with Israel regarding the exchange of prisoners.
This is not the time to talk about negotiating any deal, prisoners or otherwise.
He stressed that Hamas is “engaged in protecting the population by fighting the Israeli army.”
Earlier, Reuters wrote that Qatar, in coordination with the United States, is negotiating with Hamas on the release of hostages captured by militants in Israel. It was noted that the mediators are offering to exchange detainees for the release of 36 Palestinian women and children from Israeli prisons.
Politico, citing statements by senior Hamas official Musa Abu Marzouk, reported that at least 130 Israelis were captured by Hamas and the Islamic Jihad group (the organization is recognized as terrorist and banned in Russia). Among the abducted were women, children and the elderly.
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Israel will continue to strike
The Times of Israel newspaper, citing a senior source in the Israeli government statedthat the military will continue to attack Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip, despite the risk of harming their captured compatriots.
According to the publication’s interlocutor, if the Israeli army has accurate intelligence information about the whereabouts of the hostages, it will not strike a specific target, but in the absence of such data, all Hamas targets will be attacked.
On the morning of October 7, the Israeli army reported that Palestinian radicals from the Gaza Strip fired rockets into Israel. In response to the rocket attacks, the Israel Defense Forces announced the launch of a military operation in Gaza. A large-scale gathering of reservists was also announced.
On the evening of October 9, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu posted a video of the attack on the Gaza Strip with the words “We have begun.” The footage shows houses exploding from missile strikes.
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