PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES – Hamas said on Friday that seven more hostages seized during its unprecedented attack on southern Israel on October 7 had died because of Israeli military operations in Gaza.
Meanwhile, four more children have died of “malnutrition and dehydration” in war-torn Gaza, the Hamas-ruled territory’s health ministry said, the latest such reported deaths as famine warnings mount.
The deaths occurred at Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra said in a statement, noting that the number of child “malnutrition and dehydration” deaths now totalled 10.
“After examination and scrutiny during recent weeks, we have confirmed the martyrdom of a number of our mujahideen and the killing of seven enemy prisoners in the Gaza Strip as a result of the Zionist (Israeli) bombing,” said a statement attributed to a spokesman for Hamas military wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades.
Hamas seized around 250 Israelis and foreigners during the October 7 attack on southern Israel, which resulted in the deaths of about 1,160 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.
Around 130 are still held captive.
Prior to Friday’s announcement by Hamas, which AFP could not independently confirm, this included 31 that Israel said were presumed dead, among them six soldiers.
Friday’s Hamas statement said the number of hostages killed as a result of Israeli military operations “may have exceeded” 70.
The reason for the discrepancy was not clear.
During a week-long truce in November a total of 105 hostages were released, the Israelis among them in exchange for Palestinians held in Israeli jails.
Egyptian, Qatari and US mediators are scrambling to lock down a new truce in Gaza, where Israel’s campaign to eliminate Hamas has killed at least 30,228 people, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-ruled territory’s health ministry.
In telephone talks on Thursday, the three countries’ leaders set out what a ceasefire deal could look like, the White House said.
“The leaders underscored that the release of hostages would result in an immediate and sustained ceasefire in Gaza over a period of at least six weeks,” the White House said.
“They exchanged views on how such a prolonged period of calm could then be built into something more enduring.”
Earlier on Friday, a spokesman for the UN humanitarian agency OCHA told reporters that “if something doesn’t change, a famine is almost inevitable” in Gaza.
“Once a famine is declared, it is too late for too many people,” said the spokesman, Jens Laerke.
Global attention turned to the dire humanitarian conditions in Gaza on Thursday, when the health ministry said more than 100 people were killed after desperate Palestinians rushed an aid convoy.
Israeli troops opened fire as Palestinian civilians scrambled for food supplies during a chaotic melee.
World leaders called on Friday for an investigation into the deaths and a ceasefire.