Israel says it has no “proof of life” for hostages taken to Gaza by Hamas

Israel lack of “proof of life” for hostages taken to the Gaza Strip by the Palestinian Islamic movement HamasIsraeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said this Tuesday, after meeting with the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), in Geneva.

“To date, none of our hostages have met with the Red Cross (…) we have no proof of life”, Cohen told a news conference at UN headquarters in Geneva, following a meeting with the ICRC president, Mirjana Spoljaric.

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The chancellor affirmed his country sent food, water and medicine to Gaza, but that so far no hostage has been examined by the Red Cross.

Almost 240 people were taken hostage when Hamas commandos entered Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip and launched an attack that left 1,200 people dead, most of them civilians, according to Israeli authorities.

In response to the Hamas attack, Israel launched an offensive in Gaza that left 11,240 dead, including 4,630 children, according to the Islamic movement’s Ministry of Health that governs this Palestinian territory.

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Some family members of the hostages were present and showed posters with images of their loved ones and messages in favor of their release.

The ICRC stressed this Tuesday that it has not stopped defending the hostages and that it maintains direct exchanges with Hamas and with people who have influence on the parties involved.

The organization indicated that it continues to request information about the hostages and their health status. It also tries to clarify the fate of the missing people.

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The Israeli Foreign Minister stated this Tuesday that the Red Cross must “be firmer and clearer in its statements and exert stronger pressure”.

Source: Elcomercio

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I am Jack Morton and I work in 24 News Recorder. I mostly cover world news and I have also authored 24 news recorder. I find this work highly interesting and it allows me to keep up with current events happening around the world.