IDF: 199 people are held captive by Hamas militants

199 people are being held captive by Hamas militants, said the official representative of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Daniel Hagari. According to him, the military is making efforts to find out exactly where the hostages are in the Gaza Strip. Their families have already been informed.

The Times of Israel writes about it.

Hagari added that among the hostages taken by the terrorists in the Gaza Strip last week, there are many elderly people, children and women.

Earlier, the ambassador of Ukraine in Israel reported that the information about Ukrainians being captured by militants was not confirmed.

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken arrived in Tel Aviv. This is his second visit since the beginning of Hamas attacks on Israel. Blinken will meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other members of the Israeli military-political cabinet.

Now the US is trying to help American citizens who are blocked in the Gaza Strip to evacuate from there. This could be done through the Rafah checkpoint. Blinken tries to arrange for it to be opened.

The Reuters agency wrote that Rafah will be opened on October 16 from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Kyiv time, but Netanyahuʼs office later denied this agreement.

What is happening in Israel

• On October 7, Hamas forces invaded the territory of Israel. In response, Israel began bombing the Gaza Strip. At least 1 400 people have died on the Israeli side, and almost 2 700 on the Palestinian side. The number of dead Ukrainians in Israel has increased to 12, and 8 more are considered missing. The UN declared numerous violations of human rights on both sides.
• In the evening of October 13, the first units of Israeli infantry and tanks entered the Gaza Strip. They will clear the area and look for hostages as part of a "local raid". The IDF has not yet entered Gaza. The New York Times, citing sources in the IDF, reported that the ground operation in the Gaza Strip was postponed for several days, in particular, due to unfavorable weather.
• White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said that Israel has restored the water supply to the south of the Gaza Strip. According to him, this was reported by the Israeli authorities. However, a responsible official from the Gaza Strip denied that the water supply had been restored.
• According to the UN humanitarian agency, fuel reserves in all hospitals in the Gaza Strip will last for about another 24 hours.