Israelis held hostage in Gaza - part 3

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Part 3.

I hope they come home soon and there's no need for a part 4.

Some families are taking legal action against The Red Cross

https://www.newsweek.com/israeli-hostages-sue-red-cross-abandoning-jews-1854661

Red cross refused to do what? The article says that their pleas to access hostages or prisoners are often ignored- Russia is an example given of someone else ignoring them and refusing them access.

It also says
”A Red Cross statement Thursday said it has been “calling for the unconditional release of the hostages as a priority, while also pressing for access to them and the ability to provide medical care.”
It said it has been working to “agree to a mechanism to deliver medicines to the hostages” — who now total more than 130 — and had with the two sides “initiated the conversation in its role as a neutral intermediary.”

Yes, I am saying Qatar should not have promised Israel that they would get the medication to the hostages. It’s one thing to negotiate in Qatar with Hamas leaders who are also in Qatar and it is another thing to have a Qatari presence in Gaza Strip and ability to get medicine to not just hostages with Hamas but the other hostages held by those other terrorist groups that don’t answer to Hamas. The Hamas leaders safety and luxury in Qatar aren’t going to personally take medicine into Gaza either.

I don’t know what is true, the associated press article I linked tells a completely different story from what Nethanyu told Knesset.

I would sue Red Cross too, the families and the hostages deserve to know the truth and if Red Cross was refusing in private to Nethanyu but then claiming otherwise in public- they should be held criminally liable and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

Israeli delegation to head to Qatar to discuss truce: Report

A delegation of Israeli officials is expected to arrive in Qatar next week, with the aim of reaching a new prisoner exchange deal, according to Israeli news outlet Channel 13.

www.timesofisrael.com/gallant-hamas-seeks-to-replace-sinwar-khan-younis-brigade-is-defeated/

If Hamas leadership has no one to contact in Gaza how can it do a deal on hostages?

Footage of the bibas family has been found, showing them alive shortly after they had been kidnapped. it’s been shown to their family, and supposed to be released later today.

https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/report-idf-has-footage-of-bibas-family-inside-gaza-a-few-days-after-abduction/

I can only read part of the story @EllaDisenchanted, is it possible to copy and paste please? A lovely family and still not completely sure what happened to each of them. A horrible way for them to spend their finals days and hours in terror.

Many thanks.

https://m.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-787768

footage from the early days of the war (I think dated 7th oct)

hi X-ray, yes I’ll use the information from the second link I posted as it is more up todate, one min

WATCH: IDF finds video of Bibas family alive pin captivity in early days of war By YAEL HALFON Published: FEBRUARY 19, 2024 16:15Updated: FEBRUARY 19, 2024 18:52

The family was told that the video was found in a tunnel or in a hiding place

The IDF found in recent days a security video showing Shiri Bibas and her children Ariel (4) and Kfir (1) alive in captivity in Gaza in the early days of the war, Israeli media reported on Monday.
Later, at a press briefing, IDF Spokesman Rear-Admiral Daniel Hagari explained that, on October 7, Shiri was kidnapped with her children by terrorists and brought to an outpost in Khan Yunis, where they were detained by a terror group by the name of Kataib Mujahadin.

There, Shiri was forced by armed terrorists to wear a piece of cloth with Kfir probably attached in a sling under the cloth, with Ariel following her. The terrorists then forced her and her children into a vehicle and onto a different location.
The video is dated to October 7, and shows they reached Khan Yunis alive, Hagari said.

From the information available to us, we are concerned for the safety of Shiri and the children, and we will not rest or rest until we bring them home," the spokesman added

Hagari also emphasized that Hamas is the sole responsible party for the Bibas family.

The family was told that the video was found in a tunnel or in a hiding place, N12 reported.
Family responds on the video Following Hagari's press briefing, the family said in a statement, "These videos tear our hearts out. Witnessing Shiri, Yarden, Ariel and Kfir, ripped away from their home in Nir Oz into this hellscape, feels unbearable and inhumane.
"Kidnapping children is a crime against humanity and a war crime.Ariel and Kfir are victims of monstrous evil.
"Our whole family has become hostages along with all the hostages.
"We desperately call on all decision makers in Israel and worldwide involved in negotiations: Bring them home immediately. Make it clear to Hamas that taking children is beyond the pale. Prioritize the return of these children first and foremost in any agreement."We want to thank the public in Israel and worldwide who support us, and ask you to continue the struggle for their return home."

Image taken from security camera footage showing the kidnapping of the Bibas family. February 19, 2024. (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)
Jimmy Miller, a family member, told Ynet, "This video has not changed anything and does not indicate anything new. A total of photographs from the first days - it does not give an indication of anything. We are hoping that they will return to us as soon as possible and that the government will do everything possible."
"These two children and their parents were supposed to be released during the first stage of the November ceasefire, and while this did not happen, the minimum would have been for them to be released in a humanitarian gesture. We are already expecting everything, the best and the worst," he said.
https://m.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-787768

Thank you

@EllaDisenchanted I have just seen that. My heart breaks.

Sinwar reported in Arabic newspaper to have escaped to Egypt via tunnels from Rafah, and may have taken hostages with them, according to i24 report. https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/israel-at-war/1708411173-israel-fears-hamas-chief-sinwar-escaped-to-egypt-report. Meanwhile TOI reports that officials in Israel are denying the Saudi report. https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/officials-deny-saudi-report-that-israel-believes-hamas-leader-sinwar-fled-to-egypt-via-rafah-tunnels/

@EllaDisenchanted that must always have been a worry that the hostages had been taken out of the country - I've always assumed that was why the first airstrikes on 7/10 were of the Rafah crossing and tunnels in Rafah to prevent this [plus senior hamas escaping]

Also piece on Al Jazeera this morning [won't post it here as know some PP don't like it] saying IDF preparing to leave Khan Younis and just need to destroy the tunnels before they go. If true where are the hostages? Are they all in Rafah now?

All very worrying

I haven't heard anything about that re Khan Younis, the only thing I have heard is that the battalion there is defeated, and Hamas are down to 4 battalions. I would assume the hostages have long been moved from there though. I can't remember where I have seen it (might just be my chat groups I am on, so not formal sources, sorry), but I think the consensus is that they are believed to be held in Rafah.

apple.news/Alr5FWSrlQEeTmFywzafYfg

So that's both at odds with reports that medicines were found at the hospital (unless that's where the hostages where) and that all contact has been cut off

Interesting though.

It seems there are conflicting reports as Haraatz Tuesday 20 said:

■ GAZA: Saudi newspaper Elaph reported that Israeli authorities have information suggesting that Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar recently fled to Egypt through the tunnels in Rafah, and that there are fears he took Israeli hostages with him.

• A senior IDF official denied the report, stating Israel has no information indicating that Sinwar has left Gaza

@ScrollingLeaves I think there is a lot of here say. Desperation for answers
Remove Sinwar do you remove hope for the hostages?

Negotiations still ongoing

According to The Times of Israel, the White House special envoy Brett McGurk will be meeting Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi in Israel this afternoon to discuss potential hostage talks and Netanyahu’s proposed Israel Defense Forces (IDF) operation in Rafah.

The publication said that later this evening, the war cabinet would meet, followed by the full national security cabinet.

Hanieyeh was also in Cairo earlier in the week

I am afraid I just don’t know at all if it would be better or worse for the hostages.

Maybe if he left the hostage holders would stop being vigilant and the hostages might escape?

www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/hostages-israel-hamas-kidnap-war-gaza-6edfdded

Interesting article.

'Israeli finance minister sparks outrage after saying returning Gaza hostages 'not most important thing'

(From Haaretz 20/02/24 - there's a paywall so I've copied the article below)

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich was asked on Tuesday in an interview if returning the hostages was the most important thing, and he replied: "No, it's not the most important thing. Why do you want competition? Everything is important."
In an interview with Kan public radio, the far-right minister added that calls to release the hostages at any cost are "incorrect and irresponsible statements." According to Smotrich, the only way to get them back is to defeat Hamas "and increase military pressure even more. That's what brought about the previous deal."
Eli Albag, the father of 18-year-old hostage Liri Albag, referred to Smotrich as "a dark and petty man" and blasted him for abandoning "my daughter, his daughter, our children."
At a spontaneous demonstration in front of the defense ministry in Tel Aviv, Albag addressed Smotrich and said: "Let them take your children, and I will shout in the street 'it's not the most important thing'."
He added: "Anyone who thinks that the kidnapped civilians are not important, then let them kidnap your children, and then you can talk."
War cabinet member Benny Gantz, responding to Smotrich's remarks, stated that the return of the hostages is the most urgent matter.
"Returning our hostages is not only a goal in our war, it is our moral obligation as a state and as a people," the centrist minister wrote on X. "We will not miss any opportunity to bring them home," he added.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid conveyed that "Smotrich's attack on the families of the hostages is a moral disgrace," adding: "People lacking compassion cannot continue to lead Israel into the abyss. Smotrich, in your and Netanyahu's watch, 1,200 Israelis were killed, citizens of Israel were kidnapped, tortured, and abused under your responsibility. Without the return of the hostages, Israel will not win."
After facing backlash, Smotrich addressed his statement and reiterated his position on X, saying that "only by destroying Hamas and winning the war will we bring back all the hostages." According to him, anyone calling for a deal at any cost "will lead to Israel's defeat in the war and also reduce the chances of bringing the hostages home."

I feel as though he is saying what most governments around the world actually believe, that us ordinary citizens are dispensable in the grand scheme of things.

Shame on him for compounding the pain of those waiting for the return of family members. Eli Albag, a man who is obviously in horrendous pain, said it well.

www.jpost.com/israel-hamas-war/article-788469

The Qatari PM and Foreign Minister, who plays a pivotal role in ceasefire negotiations between the Israeli government and Hamas, also downplayed the priority of hostages being released:

In a notable statement made at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, Qatar’s prime minister, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, emphasized that a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas should not be contingent upon the release of hostages.
Al-Thani expressed concern over the conditionality of ceasefire negotiations, asserting, "This is the dilemma that we’ve been in and unfortunately that’s been misused by a lot of countries, that in order to get a ceasefire, it’s conditional to have the hostage deal. It shouldn’t be conditioned."

Israeli President Isaac Herzog, also addressing the conference, appeared to rebuff Al-Thani's remarks, emphasizing the imperative of resolving the hostage issue. Herzog stressed, "If one wants to move on and find a horizon and end this dire situation... one has to resolve the issue of the hostages and bring them back home safely and as soon as possible."

(From i24news)
https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/israel-at-war/1708238510-qatari-pm-urges-decoupling-of-hostage-release-from-ceasefire-talks