Less Than
Half of the 59 Hostages in Gaza Are Believed to Be Alive
Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday’s attack on Gaza came after Hamas said
no to the latest proposals by mediators, which included releasing the remaining
captives.
Jin Yu Young
By Jin Yu
Young
March 18,
2025, 12:52 a.m. ET
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/18/world/middleeast/israel-gaza-hostages.html
The
resumption of heavy Israeli strikes in Gaza immediately cast into question the
status of the remaining hostages held there by Hamas and other groups — with
fewer than half of the 59 left still thought to be alive, according to the
Israeli government.
A recent New
York Times analysis showed that at least 41 hostages had died during their
captivity by Hamas and its allies. Of the 251 people seized and taken into Gaza
during the attacks on Oct. 7, 2023, 130 or more hostages have been released.
The Israeli military has retrieved the bodies of at least 40 others.
In January,
Israel and Hamas agreed to a multi-stage truce that would allow for the
exchange of Hamas-captured hostages in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian
prisoners jailed by Israel.
The first
phase of the cease-fire ended in early March. Hamas released 30 Israeli and
foreign hostages and handed over eight bodies, in exchange for the Israeli
release of over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners. Several hostages had already been
rescued or released before the two sides reached the agreement.
The fate of
the cease-fire was unclear, though, after Israel resumed heavy strikes into
Gaza on Tuesday, citing Hamas’s repeated refusal to release the remaining
hostages. Earlier this month, President Trump sent warnings to Hamas militants
to immediately release the remaining hostages in Gaza or face death.
Hamas
accused Israel early Tuesday of overturning the cease-fire, “exposing the
prisoners in Gaza to an unknown fate.”
Jin Yu Young
reports on South Korea, the Asia Pacific region and global breaking news from
Seoul. More about Jin Yu Young
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