In a recent development, the Israeli military has announced the recovery of six bodies of hostages taken during the October 7 attack by Hamas that triggered the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
This information comes as American and Arab mediators strive to broker an agreement to cease hostilities and secure the release of numerous captives held by militants.
According to ABC News, the military operation to recover the bodies took place overnight in southern Gaza. However, the circumstances surrounding the deaths of the six hostages remain unclear. A group representing the families of the hostages maintains that their loved ones were abducted alive, while Hamas claims that some captives have been killed or injured in Israeli airstrikes.
In a separate incident on Tuesday, an Israeli airstrike targeted a school in Gaza City that had been converted into a shelter, resulting in at least ten fatalities. The military asserts that the strike was a precise hit on a Hamas command center. Another strike in central Gaza claimed the lives of a mother and her five children.
The recovery of the bodies represents a setback for Hamas, which had hoped to use the hostages as bargaining chips in negotiations for the release of Palestinian prisoners, an Israeli withdrawal, and a lasting ceasefire. However, this development is also likely to intensify pressure on the Israeli government to negotiate the release of the remaining hostages believed to be alive.
The military has identified the remains of the six hostages as Chaim Perry, 80; Yoram Metzger, 80; Avraham Munder, 79; Alexander Dancyg, 76; Nadav Popplewell, 51; and Yagev Buchshtav, 35. Metzger, Munder, Popplewell, and Buchshtav had family members who were also abducted but were later released during a ceasefire in November.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu commended the recovery effort, expressing sorrow for the tragic loss. "The State of Israel will continue to make every effort to return all of our hostages both alive and dead," he stated.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant also lauded the operation, which he said was conducted within Hamas' extensive tunnel network. There were no immediate reports of casualties among Israelis or Palestinians during the recovery operation.
Hamas is believed to be holding approximately 110 hostages captured during the October 7th attack. Israeli authorities estimate that around a third of them are dead.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, currently on his ninth visit to the region since the war's onset, stated on Monday that Netanyahu has accepted a proposal to bridge the gaps in the ceasefire talks, which have been ongoing for months. He urged Hamas to do the same.
However, Hamas has accused the United States of favoring Israeli demands and attempting to impose them on the militant group. Significant differences remain between the two sides, including Israel's demand for lasting control over two strategic corridors in Gaza, which Hamas has rejected.
In the October 7th attack, Hamas-led militants breached Israel's defenses, killing approximately 1,200 people, primarily civilians, and taking around 250 people hostage. Over 100 hostages were released in exchange for Palestinians imprisoned in Israel during a weeklong ceasefire last year.
Israel's retaliatory offensive has resulted in over 40,000 Palestinian deaths, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not specify how many were militants. The military operations have caused widespread destruction and forced the majority of Gaza's 2.3 million residents to abandon their homes, often multiple times, sparking fears of disease outbreaks among aid groups.
The Palestinian Civil Defense, a first responder unit operating under the Hamas-run government, reported that the strike on the Mustafa Hafez school in Gaza City killed at least ten people. They stated that around 700 people were seeking shelter at the school when it was hit.
The Israeli military maintains that the strike was aimed at Hamas militants who had established a command center inside the school and were planning and launching attacks.
In central Gaza, an Israeli airstrike killed five children and their mother, as confirmed by the nearby Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital. The hospital reported that the father, Alaa Abu Zeid, a schoolteacher, has been in Israeli detention for the past nine months.
Mediators are working to finalize a proposal for a three-phase process in which Hamas would release all the hostages in return for the release of more Palestinian prisoners, an Israeli withdrawal from the territory, and a lasting truce.
Secretary Blinken traveled to Egypt on Tuesday and is also expected to hold talks in Qatar. Both Arab nations have played a crucial role in mediating with Hamas.
Login