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Hamas has expressed openness to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) delivering aid to Israeli captives held in Gaza, following Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's request for the Geneva-based organization's involvement, Al Jazeera reported.
Netanyahu said on Sunday that he had spoken to Julian Larson, head of the ICRC delegation to Israel, requesting the group's "immediate involvement" in providing food and medical treatment to captives still held in Gaza. The statements came after Palestinian groups last week released videos showing two emaciated Israeli captives amid a broader starvation crisis affecting some 2 million Palestinians in Gaza, Al Jazeera noted. In a post on X, Netanyahu wrote in Hebrew that Hamas was spreading a "lie of starvation" in Gaza, but "systematic starvation is being carried out against our hostages." Hamas's armed wing, the Qassam Brigades, responded through spokesman Abu Obeida, saying Israeli captives "eat what our fighters and all our people eat" and will "not receive any special privilege amid the crime of starvation and siege." However, Abu Obeida added that Hamas is "ready to act positively and respond to any request from the Red Cross to deliver food and medicine to enemy prisoners," Al Jazeera reported. Abu Obeida stressed the need for "humanitarian corridors" to be opened permanently for food and medicine to reach all Gaza residents and called for an end to Israeli attacks "during the receipt of packages for the prisoners." The ICRC expressed being "appalled by the harrowing videos" of the captives and reiterated its call to be "granted access to the hostages." The organization said, "These videos are stark evidence of the life-threatening conditions in which the hostages are being held." It added, "We know families watching these videos are horrified and heartbroken by the conditions they see their loved ones held in," Al Jazeera reported. According to the ICRC's website, "securing access requires the cooperation of all parties involved." The group also said it "has not been able to visit any Palestinian detainees held in Israeli places of detention since 7 October 2023." In a separate statement, the ICRC condemned the killing of a Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) staff member in a "clearly marked Palestine Red Crescent Society building" in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, Al Jazeera reported. The PRCS earlier blamed Israeli forces for the attack. Meanwhile, families of Israeli captives in Gaza criticized Netanyahu's insistence that a "military resolution" is the only solution, calling it "a direct danger to the lives of our sons, who live in the hell of tunnels and are threatened by starvation and immediate death." They said, "For 22 months, the public has been sold the illusion that military pressure will bring back the hostages, and today, even before reaching a comprehensive draft agreement, it is said that an agreement is futile," Al Jazeera reported. About 50 captives remain in Gaza, with fewer than half believed to be alive. The Gaza Government Media Office reported that Israeli authorities allowed only 36 aid trucks into Gaza on Saturday, while 22,000 trucks remain outside waiting to deliver food to Palestinians, Al Jazeera added. The United Nations office in Geneva warned that 1 million women and girls in Gaza are now starving. In a post on X, the UN said: "One million. That's how many women and girls are starving in Gaza. This horrific situation is unacceptable and must end. We continue to demand the delivery of lifesaving aid for all women and girls, an immediate ceasefire, and the release of all hostages," Al Jazeera reported. At least 175 people, including 93 children, have died from forced starvation, according to Gaza's Ministry of Health, including 17-year-old Atef Abu Khater, who weighed only 25 kg (55 lbs) before his death on Saturday. (ANI)
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