Israeli Hostages

Israel Identifies Dead Hostage Returned on Friday

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said on Saturday that the body of a deceased hostage Hamas returned overnight has been identified as 75-year-old Eliyahu Margalit. The Israeli military "informed the family of the abductee Eliyahu Margalit... that (the body of) their loved one has been returned to Israel and his identification ...

Trump Says 'We Will Disarm' Hamas, Urges Return of Gaza Bodies

US President Donald Trump said Tuesday that "we will disarm" Hamas if the Palestinian militants refuse to do it themselves, as he called for the group to release the bodies of hostages in Gaza. Trump's comments came the day after he swung through the Middle East to celebrate the Gaza ceasefire deal, with questions swirling about the ...

Israel Forum Says It Is Concerned for Gaza Hostages after Doha Strikes

The main Israeli group campaigning for the release of hostages held in Gaza expressed "deep concern" following an Israeli attack on Tuesday on Hamas's leadership in Qatar, which has been mediating ceasefire talks. "The families of the hostages are following the developments in Doha with deep concern and heavy anxiety. A grave fear now hangs over ...

US Envoy Meets Israeli Hostage Families in Tel Aviv

US envoy Steve Witkoff met anguished relatives of Israeli hostages still held in Gaza on Saturday, as fears for the captives' survival mounted almost 22 months into the war sparked by Hamas's October 2023 attack. Witkoff was greeted with some applause and pleas for assistance from hundreds of protesters gathered in Tel Aviv before going into a ...

Palestinian Official Says Hamas Agrees to Gaza Proposal, Israel Dismisses It

Conflicting statements emerged Monday after a Palestinian official claimed that Hamas had accepted a Gaza ceasefire proposal attributed to U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff—an assertion later denied by both Israel and Witkoff himself. A Palestinian official close to Hamas told Reuters that the group had agreed to a proposal received through ...

Hamas Says Gaza Aid Block Impacts Israeli Hostages

Hamas accused Israel Saturday of "committing the war crime of collective punishment" by halting aid to Gaza for a seventh day, saying it also impacted Israeli hostages still held there. On Sunday, Israel announced it was blocking aid deliveries to Gaza until Palestinian militants accepted its terms for an extension of the ceasefire which had ...

Israel Says 'Will Not Be Deterred' after Hamas Issues Hostage Video

The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed on Saturday as "Hamas propaganda" new footage released by the Palestinian militant group, showing what appeared to be Israeli hostages in Gaza alongside a ceasefire message. "The Hamas terrorist organisation released another cruel propaganda video this evening, in which our ...

Hamas to Free 6 Israeli Hostages, Hand Over 4 Bodies this Week

Hamas said Tuesday that it would hand over all six living Israeli hostages due for release under the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire this week, as well as the bodies of four dead captives. The fragile Gaza truce took effect on January 19 after more than 15 months of fighting between Israel and Hamas, sparked by the Palestinian militant group's ...

Hamas Calls for 'Solidarity Marches' Worldwide Against Plans to Displace Gazans

Hamas on Wednesday called for worldwide "solidarity marches" over the weekend to protest a US plan endorsed by Israel to displace Palestinians from the war-ravaged Gaza Strip. "We... call on the masses of our people, our Arab and Islamic nation, and the free people of the world to go out in massive solidarity marches" from ...

Israel says Hamas Announcement 'Complete Violation' of Gaza Truce

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz on Monday called an announcement by the Palestinian militant group Hamas that it would postpone the release of hostages a "complete violation" of the Gaza ceasefire agreement. "Hamas' announcement to stop releasing Israeli hostages is a complete violation of the ceasefire agreement and the ...

Hamas Tells Gaza Militant Groups to Identify Hostages They Hold

Sources within Palestinian militant groups in Gaza said Sunday that Hamas had told them to compile information on the hostages they hold in preparation for a ceasefire and hostage-release deal with Israel. Hamas told factions including Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front and the Popular Resistance Committees to prepare information such ...