Israeli military retrieves bodies of six hostages from Gaza
By Maytaal Angel
JERUSALEM, Aug 20 (Reuters) -Israel retrieved the bodies of six hostages from the Khan Younis area in southern Gaza, the military said on Tuesday, as negotiations continued in an effort to bring back more than 100 who remain in the besieged enclave.
The return of the six bodies leaves 109 hostages still believed to be in Gaza, around a third of whom are thought to be dead, with the fate of the others unknown.
The return of the bodies came as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was due to meet officials in Egypt as he continues a visit to the region aimed at bridging differences between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas over a deal to end the fighting in Gaza and return the hostages.
Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said the bodies of Yagev Buchshtab, Alexander Dancyg, Abraham Munder, Yoram Metzger, Nadav Popplewell and Chaim Peri were recovered from tunnels under Khan Younis in southern Gaza after a "complex operation".
"We will continue working to achieve the goals of this war - returning the hostages to Israel and dismantling Hamas," he said in a statement.
The Hostages Families Forum, an organisation that represents most hostage families, welcomed the news but renewed its call on the government to conclude a hostage release deal with Hamas.
"The immediate return of the remaining 109 hostages can only be achieved through a negotiated deal. The Israeli government, with the assistance of mediators, must do everything in its power to finalise the deal currently on the table," it said.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has faced heavy criticism from many of the hostage families for failing to secure a deal, said the government would keep working to bring back the hostages still left in Gaza.
"The state of Israel will continue to make every effort to return all our hostages - the living and the dead," he said in a statement.
Most of the hostages in Gaza were seized by Hamas gunmen as they rampaged through communities in southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing some 1,200 Israelis and foreigners and abducting around 250 as hostages. In addition, Hamas was already holding two Israeli citizens who entered Gaza around a decade ago as well as the bodies of two soldiers killed in 2014.
Since Oct. 7, Israel's military has levelled swathes of the Palestinian enclave, driving nearly all of its 2.3 million people from their homes and killing at least 40,000, according to Palestinian health authorities.
Reporting by Maytaal Angel and Maayan Lubell; Editing by Alex Richardson
Latest News
Disclaimer: The XM Group entities provide execution-only service and access to our Online Trading Facility, permitting a person to view and/or use the content available on or via the website, is not intended to change or expand on this, nor does it change or expand on this. Such access and use are always subject to: (i) Terms and Conditions; (ii) Risk Warnings; and (iii) Full Disclaimer. Such content is therefore provided as no more than general information. Particularly, please be aware that the contents of our Online Trading Facility are neither a solicitation, nor an offer to enter any transactions on the financial markets. Trading on any financial market involves a significant level of risk to your capital.
All material published on our Online Trading Facility is intended for educational/informational purposes only, and does not contain – nor should it be considered as containing – financial, investment tax or trading advice and recommendations; or a record of our trading prices; or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instruments; or unsolicited financial promotions to you.
Any third-party content, as well as content prepared by XM, such as: opinions, news, research, analyses, prices and other information or links to third-party sites contained on this website are provided on an “as-is” basis, as general market commentary, and do not constitute investment advice. To the extent that any content is construed as investment research, you must note and accept that the content was not intended to and has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such, it would be considered as marketing communication under the relevant laws and regulations. Please ensure that you have read and understood our Notification on Non-Independent Investment. Research and Risk Warning concerning the foregoing information, which can be accessed here.
