JERUSALEM: A senior Israeli negotiator told AFP Monday that tens of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza are certainly alive and that Israel cannot accept halting the war until all captives are released in a deal.
Hamas militants seized 251 hostages on October 7, of whom Israel believes 116 remain in Gaza, including 41 who the army says are dead.
“Tens are alive with certainty,” the official said on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak publicly on the issue.
“We cannot leave them there a long time, they will die,” he said, adding that a vast majority of them were being held by Hamas militants.
US President Joe Biden last month unveiled a three-phase proposal to end the war in Gaza, which includes a ceasefire and the release of hostages held by Hamas.
Biden said the first phase includes a “full and complete ceasefire” lasting six weeks, with Israeli forces withdrawing from “all populated areas of Gaza.”
The official said Israel could not end the conflict with Hamas before a hostage deal because the militants could “breach their commitment... and drag out the negotiations for 10 years” or more.
“We cannot, at this point in time — before signing the agreement — commit to ending the war,” the official said.
“Because during the first phase, there’s a clause that we hold negotiations about the second phase. The second phase is the release of the men and male soldier hostages.”
The official said the Israeli negotiating team had greenlit the Biden plan.
“We expect, and are waiting for, Hamas to say ‘yes,’” the official said.
The Israeli government has yet to publicly approve the Biden plan.
“In the event we don’t reach an agreement with Hamas, the IDF (army) will continue to fight in the Gaza Strip in a no less intense fashion than it’s fighting now,” he said.
“In a different manner, but an intense manner.”
The war between Israel and Hamas broke out after Hamas carried out an unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7 that resulted in the deaths of 1,194 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign in Gaza has killed at least 37,347 people, also mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry.
Israeli negotiator says tens of Gaza hostages ‘alive with certainty’
https://arab.news/r7e2v
Israeli negotiator says tens of Gaza hostages ‘alive with certainty’
- “Tens are alive with certainty,” the official said on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak publicly on the issue
Syrian and Lebanese presidents discuss border security after Hezbollah strikes hit west Damascus
- Ahmad Al-Sharaa expresses Syria’s absolute support for Lebanese government’s efforts to disarm the Iran-backed militant group
LONDON: The Syrian president, Ahmad Al-Sharaa, and his Lebanese counterpart, Joseph Aoun, discussed border security on Tuesday.
It came as Syria accused the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah of massing reinforcements close to the border, targeting army positions in Syria, and launching artillery shells from Lebanese territory that landed near the town of Serghaya, west of the capital Damascus.
During his conversation with Aoun, Al-Sharaa expressed his absolute support for the Lebanese government’s efforts to disarm Hezbollah, the Syrian Arab News Agency reported. Depriving the group of its weapons was a crucial step in efforts to strengthen the sovereignty of Lebanon and protect the region from the consequences of ongoing armed conflicts, he added.
The two leaders also emphasized the need for joint action to ensure the safety of the Syrian people.
Thousands of Syrians who fled to Lebanon to escape the 13-year civil war in their country have returned home since the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran on Feb. 28, and the spread of the conflict to other parts of the Middle East.
Israel has launched strikes against Israel and several Arab countries in the region, while Hezbollah, an ally of Tehran which the UK and other nations consider a terrorist organization, has also fired into Israel.
Israeli forces have hit back against Hezbollah with strikes on southern Lebanon and southern Beirut, and its forces have occupied key areas south of the Litani River.
