Hamas urges Israel to halt strikes as it searches for two hostages

Israeli security forces gather near the scene of a reported ramming attack at the Jit junction, west of Nablus in the occupied West Bank. Photo / Jaafar Ashtiyeh, AFP

Hamas’ armed wing urged the Israeli military to temporarily halt airstrikes and withdraw from part of Gaza City on Sunday as it tried to locate two Israeli hostages it said it had lost contact with.

“The lives of the two prisoners are in real danger, and [Israeli] forces must immediately withdraw to the south of Street 8 and halt aerial operations for 24 hours starting from 18:00 today to allow attempts to rescue the prisoners,” wrote the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades in a statement.

In a previous announcement, the armed group said the loss of contact was because of Israeli military operations in two southern Gaza City neighbourhoods over the previous 48 hours, where Israeli forces have stepped up air and ground assaults.

In the past, the Islamist movement announced that it had lost contact with an Israeli-American hostage, who was released a few days after that announcement.

Since launching its offensive on Gaza City, the Israeli military has repeatedly ordered Palestinians to move south.

Speaking at the United Nations, Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to “finish the job” against Hamas, despite sharp international condemnation following the intensification of the offensive.

The war in Gaza was sparked by Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that resulted in the deaths of 1219 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

Of the 251 people abducted during the attack, 47 remain held in Gaza, including 25 whom the Israeli military says are dead.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive in Gaza has killed at least 66,005 people, mostly civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry, which the UN deems reliable.

-Agence France-Presse