Israel’s Coordinator for Captives and Missing Persons Gal Hirsch told CNN over the weekend that many Israeli hostages are being held in Rafah.

Speaking in an interview at the Munich Security Conference in Germany, Hirsch added that there are also many terror groups, including Hamas, in Rafah.

“In Rafah, there are many hostages and many, many terror groups – actually Hamas is still there,” he said, adding that Israel has no interest in harming “innocent” Gazans but a military operation there is non-negotiable.

“Rafah has many people there that Hamas is using right now as human shields. We are doing our best – everything possible, to avoid collateral damage. But Rafah must be next because we must release our hostages.”

Regarding a hostage deal, Hirsch said: “We want a deal very much and we know we need to pay prices, but Hamas’s demands are disconnected from reality – delusional.”

Hirsch also expressed concern that Hamas lacks a leader who is capable of delivering any commitments in a potential hostage deal, noting the fact that medication transferred to Hamas for hostages was never delivered.

“We need proof that on the other side, there is someone who can deliver,” he emphasized.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)