There are still about 120 hostages being held in the Gaza Strip after the attack launched by Hamas on Israel on October 7. The fate of these hostages constitutes a very important part of the peace negotiations currently taking place between Hamas and Israel.
Hamas took 250 people hostage during the attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. Many of them were released or released in military operations. Some of them were killed, but the fate of 120 hostages remains unknown.
-I have no idea how many are alive. No one knows, Hamas spokesman Osama Hamdan tells CNN. He says it is possible that the number of hostages killed was higher than is publicly known. For example, an Israeli hostage-free operation in the Gaza Strip last weekend allegedly freed one hostage, but killed three others, including an American citizen.
Read also: UN investigators accuse Israel and Palestinian factions of committing war crimes in Gaza
– Hamas must end
The United States put the ceasefire proposal on the table, and the United Nations Security Council voted in favor of the proposal. Both Israel and Hamas show a positive stance on the proposal, but both sides want certain changes. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken expressed his frustration, especially at the numerous amendments proposed by Hamas.
Read also: Biden unsure if there will be a ceasefire soon
In an interview with CNN Hamas spokesman Osama Hamdan says that Hamas demands complete Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, the lifting of the siege on the Gaza Strip, and for the Palestinians to control Gaza themselves. In addition, there are discussions about what is a fair exchange when it comes to Israeli hostages in the Gaza Strip and Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons.
Published this week The Wall Street Journal Leaked messages from Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar say Hamas has benefited from civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip. To date, 37,000 Palestinians have been killed. The newspaper is said to have seen dozens of letters sent by peace negotiators to Sinwar, who lives in hiding. Sinwar expresses in his letters that “we have the Israelis exactly where we want them” and that the heavy civilian casualties were “necessary sacrifices” in the fight for a greater goal.
Hamas says these reports are false and that it is not true that Sinwar should have referred to the Palestinian deaths as “necessary victims.” Hamas spokesman Hamdan said that pressure on Hamas to accept the ceasefire proposal is false.
Read also: Hamas describes the ceasefire proposal as positive, but it wants changes
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told NBC this week that Hamas is constantly trying to get more negotiations out of the way, and that Hamas leader Sinwar must now ensure the negotiations are concluded and peace can be achieved.
Blinken said: – He is relatively safe underground, but the people he pretends to represent suffer every day.
– Hamas must prove that it wants to put an end to this. If they did, we could have an end. If they don't want to, Blinken says, it means the war continues.
Don't believe in Israel
Hamas spokesman Hamdan told CNN that Hamas is concerned that Israel has no intention of allowing the ceasefire to transition to lasting peace. Hamas fears that Israel will start new fighting after the hostages are released.
Read also: Hamas says the United States should pressure Israel to accept a ceasefire
– The Israelis want a ceasefire for six weeks, and then continue fighting. Hamdan says: I do not think that the United States has yet been able to convince Israel to accept a permanent ceasefire.
He said, “The Israelis want a ceasefire for only six weeks and after that they will return to fighting, and I believe that the Americans, so far, have not convinced the Israelis to accept (a permanent ceasefire).” He believes the United States must convince Israel to accept a permanent ceasefire as part of the agreement.
Hamas has no regrets
Osama Hamdan, a Hamas spokesman, was asked by CNN whether Hamas regrets attacking Israel on October 7, thus sparking the deadly war that has claimed the lives of 37,000 people in the Gaza Strip.
Hamdan blames Israel for the October 7 war and its occupation of the Gaza Strip.
– If you oppose the occupation, he will kill you. If you do not resist the occupation, they will kill you and deport you out of your country. So what should we do? just wait? CNN asks rhetorically.
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