The Hamas terror organization claims that it is “unsure” whether it can offer 40 civilian hostages in a potential ceasefire deal, The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday morning.
A Hamas official said that Hamas cannot commit to releasing 40 living hostages but could commit to a total of 40 hostages dead or alive – meaning that bodies would be included in the deal.
There are 134 hostages still in Gaza, of whom at least 34 were confirmed by the IDF to have been murdered. However, according to the report, US and Israeli officials privately estimate that the number of deaths could be much higher. Any remaining hostages are being used by Hamas leaders as human shields in tunnels in southern Gaza.
US officials familiar with the intelligence said that some US estimates indicate that most of the hostages have already been murdered. However, they emphasized that US visibility on the hostages is limited and is partially dependent on Israeli intelligence.
Arab mediators talking directly to Hamas believe that most of the remaining hostages who are alive are younger male hostages, including soldiers.
Hamas refuses to release male hostages who are the age of IDF service, whether they were serving as soldiers when they were abducted or not, saying that for their release, Israel must pay a far higher price.
“It’s been six months since these people were taken into Gaza,” said Ofer Merin, the director-general of Shaare Tzedek Hospital and a member of the forensic medical committee that determined the deaths of some hostages based on video and security camera footage.
“These families have no second in the day or a second in the night that their minds are calm. They are in constant agony.”
(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
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7 Responses
And Israel is accused of war crimes! This is all par the cause and fair game as the world sees it.
What is the worse of two evils: leaving 134 hostages or their dead bodies in Gaza, or turning the whole civilian population of Israel into hostages by giving in to Hamas demands and US instructions to let hundreds of murderers out onto the streets? Make no mistake about it, if any deal is made with Hamas they are simply going to come back for more. They only want one thing: the destruction of the State of Israel and the death of as many Israelis as possible. The Israeli Government must say no to any deal. Even a deal that allows for the release of all the hostages dead or alive.
Are we going to see the world outraged and appalled about this war crime? Are we going to see widespread codemnation of this in all the news around the globe?
Yea right. I don’t think so.
I see only one solution. We must give into their ridiculous demands & as many terrorist bodies as they want for our hostage bodies. Keep on killing those terrorists…
No live terrorists should be given back ever!
It is very convenient for US officials to claim that the hostages have all been murdered.
This lets the US off the hook for their abandonment of US citizens taken hostage by Hamas.
Hamas has every reason for using live hostages to squeeze concessions from Israel.
The US policy of abandonment of the hostages, and providing food and other supplies to the Hamas terrorist army under a phony banner of “humanitarian aid” is a travesty and an outrageous betrayal of both America and Israel.
I hope 🇺🇸 intelligence got it wrong, but sadly they probably are correct in surmizing that most if not all hostages are already deceased:- Even if not by direct murder, then through lack of upkeep over previous 1/2 year.
the one who killed the hostages if its true is Biden
this could have been over months ago
Israel is just wasting precious time
finish it off
cut off the snakes