IDF: 199 people are held captive by Hamas militants

Author:
Anna Kholodnova
Date:
IDF: 199 people are held captive by Hamas militants

Relatives and friends of Israeli hostages look at a photo of the captives in Tel Aviv on October 14, 2023.

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