The families of four hostages in Gaza have released photos of their daughters, taken shortly after they were taken prisoner, following the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7. It is only the last desperate gesture of the relatives of the kidnapped. The photos were published by the 'Daily Mail' to mark the third month of their captivity, in an attempt to intensify international pressure for a deal on the hostages. These are the images of three nineteen-year-olds Karina Ariev, Agam Berger and Daniela Gilboa, as well as the youngest, the just eighteen-year-old Liri Albag.
Hamas has reiterated publicly that it does not intend to release any more hostages, beyond the 105 freed under the November agreement, unless Israel will not completely end the conflict. Now the families of the hostages, Ronen Neutra, whose son Omer is still a hostage, explained to the 'Times of Israel, expect to have an update on possible negotiations for the release of their loved ones from US Secretary of State Antony Blinkenwho arrived in Israel as part of his fourth mission in the region with stops in Istanbul, Crete, Amman, Doha, Abu Dhabi, Al 'Ula, Saudi Arabia, the West Bank and Cairo.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant meanwhile met with the relatives of the kidnapped soldiers, to whom he guaranteed that the operation will not stop until they have been returned home. 136 hostages, kidnapped by Hamas on October 7, are believed to be in Gaza – not all alive – after the release of some of them during the week-long truce in late November brokered by Qatar. Even before that, four hostages had been freed and one had been saved by the military. The bodies of eight others kidnapped were also recovered.
The Israel Defense Forces confirmed the deaths of 25 people still held by Hamas, citing intelligence information and test results obtained by troops operating in Gaza. Hamas also has the bodies of Israeli soldiers Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin since 2014, and holds two Israeli civilians, Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, both believed to be alive after entering the Strip on their own initiative in 2014 and 2015, respectively .
The video appeal of a hostage
An appeal to the Israeli authorities to accept an agreement for an exchange of prisoners with Hamas was launched by Elad Katzir, the 47-year-old Israeli kidnapped last October 7 in the Nir Oz kibbutz and appeared yesterday in a video released by Islamic Jihad. Already on December 20, Katzir appeared in a propaganda video of the Palestinian Islamist group based in the Gaza Strip.
“You left me prisoner to face death for the first time on October 7 and now for three months you have left me to face death here in Gaza,” said the man held hostage, addressing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. , and members of the Knesset.
“I have been in the grip of Islamic Jihad for three months,” Katzir continued, underlining that he “miraculously survived” on October 7 and regretting having learned the news of the death of his “friend” Tamir Hadar in Gaza. “Don't tell my family that you did everything for my release. This is not true”, added Katzir, still referring to the government and asking for “this war of extermination” to be stopped.
The trip to Doha
The families of six hostages held by terrorists flew to Doha. “We met the prime minister of Qatar,” said Daniel Lifshitz, nephew of one of the kidnappers, Oded Lifshitz. “It was important for them to hear the families' point of view directly. The key message that was delivered to us during the meeting we had was that a ceasefire could speed up the progress of negotiations for the release of all the hostages.”
“They were attentive, they knew our stories and they showed participation,” said Ruby Chen, whose son Itay Chen was abducted on October 7. Qatar considers the hostage situation a humanitarian crisis and an absolute priority, he continued. “The gap between the two sides is still wide”, she added, however, reporting on the talks. “We have sensed that the Government of Qatar is committed to its goal of freeing all the hostages, and considers this a mission of the utmost humanitarian importance, which will bring tranquility to the region,” explained Noam Perry, daughter of Haim Perry, among the kidnapped, who asked the government to give priority to the release of the hostages.
“Attempt to free a hostage foiled”
The al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, announced yesterday, as reported by the Jewish State media, that they had thwarted an attempt by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to free a hostage in the Bureij camp, in the central area of the Gaza Strip.
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