A Fifth of Hamas's Remaining Hostages Have Died, Israel Says

Israel estimates that a fifth of Hamas's hostages remaining in Gaza have died, the New York Times reported Tuesday.

At least 32 of the remaining 136 hostages are dead, the outlet reported, citing four anonymous Israeli military officials. The government has informed families of those whom the military has confirmed to be deceased.

Most of the 32 dead were killed on Oct. 7, the military told the Times. It added that it was "deploying all available resources to locate and retrieve as much information as possible regarding the hostages currently held by Hamas."

During their terror attacks on Oct. 7, Hamas terrorists took about 240 hostages from towns and other areas near the Jewish state's border with Gaza. It has since released less than half of them, most during a days-long truce in late November.

Hostages released by Hamas have recounted horror stories from their time in captivity. The accounts have included the branding of child hostages, as well as instances of torture and sexual abuse.

Soldiers in the Israel Defense Forces mistakenly killed three hostages in mid-December, with the military attributing the error to troops mistaking their cries for help for an ambush.

Hamas has attempted to capitalize on hostage deaths for propaganda purposes. Last month, Hamas produced a video featuring three other hostages, teasing that it would reveal which of them was alive. It later released another video in which one hostage said the other two had died in Israeli airstrikes, a claim the IDF denied.

This is an agonizing time for Israel There was a fundamental failure in intelligence that allowed the munitions buildup in Gaza,and the suprise attack. The Israelis must face the hard possibility that at the root of this intelligence failure was widespread anti Netanyahu sentiments within Mossad. Also the Israel military knows that it can neither rescue the remaining hostages, nor can they politically or militarily totally destroy Hamas within Gaza. That alone is a failure. Justly or unjustly all this happened on Netanyahu’s watch. Sadly his career will end in failure. He will never be at peace knowing that this occurred and that the Iranian mullah regime and their nuclear, existential threat to Israel outlasted him.

Different Take.
Many threats are being thwarted everyday. The public learns of on a minuscule percentage. The Hamas terrorists decided on the spur of the moment and only a handful of operatives were in on the decision, which was reported to have been only a day or two before the attack. Other terrorist partners were angry because they had no warning.
The parade of blame assigners are attention whores and traitors to their Nation, with political axes to grind. They should be called out for giving comfort to the enemy, a barbarous, hate filled group bent on causing maximum pain, injury & death. They should be shunned for weakening their Country at a time of war when the Country should unite to preserve Israel and the lives of the Israeli people.

Israel has the right to secure peace for their people, to show a capable, implacable and able defense against attack. They are not responsible for deaths of hostages, friendly fire accidents or civilian deaths, injuries and infrastructure damage. Like any criminal responsible for deaths or injuries caused as a result of their criminal activity Hamas, it’s allies, it’s enablers, it’s willing accomplises bears the total and complete responsibility.

Nations that ignored the truth of Hamas, Nations who gave fig leaves of respectability to terrorist entities, Nations who gave aid to terrorist states and allowed money to flow to strengthen middle east terror groups are culpable.

Obama, Biden & state department/military figures are stained with blood, duplicity and treason against the American people for their part in the actions against Israel. I am ashamed to be American whenever Blinken, Biden and other puppets of the left put pressure on Israel to abandon the eradication of Hamas.

When the lie about a two state solution is paraded like a truth to put pressure on a Nation involved in a defensive war I despise the speaker and repudiate the body they represent. When did the world become so duplicitous that frank lies are the currency of France, Canada, UK, US and many others?

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