Illustrative image. (The Israeli Defense Forces)
Seven Israeli hostages held in the Gaza Strip had been killed by Israeli bombardment, the military wing of the Hamas Movement announced on March 1.
Abu Obeida, the spokesperson for Hamas’ Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, said that the group confirmed the news following investigations conducted over the past few weeks after it had lost contact with the fighters who had been holding the hostages.
According to the spokesman, a number of Hamas fighters “martyred” along with the slain Israeli hostages as a result of the bombardment.
Three of the hostages mentioned in Friday’s statement had been identified, Abu Obeida said, without clarifying when the seven had died.
The total number of hostages killed as a result of Israeli military operations in Gaza “may have exceeded” 70, the spokesman added.
Hamas took 253 hostages when its fighters launched a surprise attack on Israel on October 7, and killed about 1,200 others.
In November, the group released 105 hostages as part of a temporary ceasefire deal with Israel, in exchange for Israel freeing 240 Palestinian prisoners. Israel says more than 100 hostages are still being held inside Gaza.
Abu Obeida suggested in his latest statement that the group was still interested in a deal with Israel to release the hostages in return for prisoners held by Israel.
“We affirm that the price we will take in exchange for five or 10 living prisoners is the same price we would have taken in exchange for all the prisoners if the enemy’s bombing operations had not killed them,” the spokesman said.
Despite ongoing talks in Qatar to secure the release of the remaining hostages as a part of ceasefire agreement, Israel expanded operations in Gaza in recent days.
At least 112 Palestinains were killed and more than 760 others were wounded while waiting for food aid in Gaza City on February 29 after Israeli troops opened fire at them for no clear reason. The massacre was only one of several violations reported in recent days.
On March 1, horrific photos showing the dead body of a Palestinains who was reportedly detained by Israeli troops then run over with a bulldozer surfaced online.
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- Click to see full-size image. Via Telegram.
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- Click to see full-size image. Via Telegram.
The health ministry in Gaza, which is run by Hamas, announced on March 2 that ten massacres took place in the Strip in the 24 hours.
“The Israeli occupation committed 10 massacres against families in the Gaza Strip, leaving 92 martyrs and 156 wounded during the past 24 hours,” the ministry said in a statement. “Many people are still trapped under rubble and on the roads as rescuers are unable to reach them,” the statement said.
The ministry added that the death toll from the Israeli war has exceeded 30,320, most of whom were women and children, with more than 71,533 others wounded.
Recent developments show that the Israeli leadership has no regards to the lives of the hostages of Palestinian civilians in Gaza. In fact, the Israeli military is now preparing an attack on the southern area of Rafah, which Hamas warned could lead to tens of thousands of casualties.
