Conflicts & War

Israel confirms 20 hostages in Hamas captivity are dead

Jerusalem, Dec 15 (EFE).- Israel said on Friday that, of the 132 people still held captive in Gaza by Palestinian militants, 20 are confirmed dead, with the recovery of eight bodies.

Government spokesperson Eylon Levy said Hamas currently holds the bodies of 20 hostages. “We know that they have been murdered in captivity.”

Levy refrained from commenting on potential negotiations for the release of captives but stressed that Israel remained determined to bring them out of the Gaza Strip alive as soon as possible.

The latest bodies recovered included two soldiers and a civilian with Israeli and French nationality, according to the spokesperson.

Levy said that with these recoveries, 132 hostages remained in Gaza, including 20 confirmed dead.

The kidnapped include 121 Israelis, eight Thais, a Nepalese, a Tanzanian, and a French-Mexican, according to data from the Prime Minister’s Office.

The remaining hostages in Gaza, following the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, are 113 men and 19 women, including two minors and 10 people over 75 years old.

Of the 132 hostages, 110 have been released so far, including 86 Israelis and 24 of other nationalities.

Most were freed during a week-long truce that started on Nov. 24, facilitated by Qatar, Egypt, and the United States, involving the release of Hamas hostages in exchange for 240 Palestinians imprisoned in Israeli jails.

The Israeli forces recovered eight bodies during their offensive in the Palestinian Strip.

Weeks before the truce, the group had freed four women, and the Israeli Army had rescued a captive soldier when the ground incursion into the Palestinian enclave began.

The Islamist group warned on Sunday that none of the hostages could be released unless Israel agreed to exchange them for Palestinian prisoners. EFE

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