The forum of relatives of Israeli hostages in Gaza confirmed this Friday the death of another hostage in the hands of Hamas, without his body being recovered. The deceased is Gadi Haggai, 73, whose wife is among the captives, according to the Forum of Families of the Abducted and Disappeared.
(Also read: Israel would have dropped 900 kilo bombs on Gaza: 'not seen since Vietnam').
Haggai and his wife Judi were captured in the attack by the Islamist group Hamas on Israel on October 7in the Nir Oz kibbutz when they were walking through the countryside, he detailed in a statement.
The woman was able to tell some friends that they had been shot and her husband was seriously injured, in the last contact they had with them.
The husband was a musician and had played in the Israeli Army orchestra, according to this source.
With the confirmation of his death, there are 128 hostages still held captive in Gaza, of which it is estimated that around twenty have died.
In the attack by the Islamist group Hamas there were more than 1,200 dead and nearly 240 kidnapped who were taken to the Strip.
(Keep reading: Israel claims to have eliminated Hamas commanders in intelligence operations).
Israel and Hamas reached a truce agreement on November 24 that lasted for a week, in which the group handed over 105 hostages, including 24 foreigners, in exchange for the release of 240 Palestinians prisoners in Israeli jails.
Negotiations between both parties for a new truce that includes the release of hostages are at a standstillsince the Islamist group refuses any pact that does not include a permanent ceasefire in the Palestinian enclave and the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, only offers Hamas “surrender or die.”
The families of those kidnapped have insistently demanded their release from Netanyahuwith strong criticism of his actions, especially since three of the captives were mistakenly killed by Israeli forces in Gaza.
(We recommend: Hamas rejects exchange of hostages for prisoners without a permanent ceasefire in Gaza).
Following the October attack, Israel launched a military offensive against the Islamist group in Gaza which has caused at least 20,057 deaths and 53,320 injuries, 70 percent children and womenaccording to the Strip's Health Ministry, controlled by Hamas.
Some 6,700 people are still under the rubble after the Israeli bombings or their fate is unknownso the figures may be higher, according to the ministry.
EFE
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