Israel’s Attackers Took About 240 Hostages. Here’s What to Know About Them.
The country’s military said 242 people had been taken hostage during the Hamas incursions. Just four have been released; one has been rescued.
Hamas, the group that controls the Gaza Strip and staged the surprise attack on Israel on Oct. 7, and other Palestinian groups are believed to be holding more than 240 hostages — people taken after Hamas stormed across the border in a brazen assault that killed at least 1,400 people.
Here’s what we know about the captives.
How many hostages are there?
The Israeli military has notified the families of 242 people kidnapped during Hamas’s attack, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, the military’s chief spokesman, said on Thursday. The count has risen as the army has collected more intelligence and accounted for the many foreign citizens who were kidnapped, Admiral Hagari said.
At least 33 children are among the hostages, according to the Israeli government.
On Monday, the Israeli military said that it had rescued an Israeli soldier who was taken hostage from her army base on Oct 7.
Hamas has released four hostages: an American Israeli mother and daughter on Oct. 20 and two Israeli women three days later, which raised hopes about the effectiveness of hostage negotiations. The Biden administration had advised Israel to delay a ground invasion of Gaza, hoping to buy time for such talks and allow more humanitarian aid to reach the sealed-off enclave.
We are having trouble retrieving the article content.
Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.
We are confirming your access to this article, this will take just a moment. However, if you are using Reader mode please log in, subscribe, or exit Reader mode since we are unable to verify access in that state.
Confirming article access.
If you are a subscriber, please log in.
Advertisement