Netanyahu pointed out that eliminating the Hamas movement will require patience and time, adding, “All of Israel is united in this battle, and victory requires patience because many dark forces want to wipe out our state.”
In turn, the head of Hamas’s office abroad, Khaled Meshaal, responded to Netanyahu, stressing that there are prisoners of high-ranking Israeli soldiers in Gaza.
According to Meshaal, “There are 6,000 male and female prisoners in Israeli prisons, and the resistance has enough to empty the prisons of all prisoners.”
Tel Aviv’s policy in dealing with the prisoners’ file
According to former Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon, Tel Aviv is dealing with the file of Israeli prisoners held by Hamas as a sub-file within the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip.
In statements to Sky News Arabia, Ayalon believes that Hamas’s talk about the killing of a number of its prisoners is part of the psychological warfare that the movement uses in order to influence the course of the “Iron Swords” operation launched by Israel.
On Monday, Hamas announced the killing of 22 prisoners, including foreigners, in the intense Israeli bombing of the Gaza Strip.
Ayalon pointed out that the prisoners “were not subjected to bombing during the raids launched by military aircraft on the Gaza Strip, according to the information available to us.”
He added, “The government sympathizes with the families who are held captive by Hamas, and there is pressure being exerted on the government by foreign governments whose citizens are among the hostages.”
Ayalon is a leader in the right-wing “Israel Our Home” party, led by former Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman, who joined the emergency government formed by Netanyahu in partnership with opposition leader Benny Gantz.
Huge loss toll
The spokesman for the Al-Qassam Brigades, Abu Ubaida, stated on Monday evening that “the number of prisoners is between 200 and 250, and the Al-Qassam Brigades have 200 prisoners.”
On the other hand, the Israeli army confirmed that the number of hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip had reached 199 people, and this announcement carries a new number of hostages, 10 days after the surprise attack launched by Hamas on Israel.
Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari stated in a press conference that: “We notified the families of 199 hostages,” and Israel had previously announced the presence of 155 hostages held by Hamas.
On the other hand, Hagari announced that at least 291 Israeli soldiers had been killed since the start of the Hamas attack.
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