The president of Israel, Isaac Herzog, said on Tuesday that he was ‘in shock’ because, in his opinion, the release of the Israeli hostages who are still in the hands of militants of the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas in Gaza is no longer the main priority of the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whom Herzog had criticised a few days earlier – without naming him – for what he described as ‘divisive’ and ‘unilateral policies’ and for not listening to the families of the hostages.
‘I am quite shocked how suddenly the issue of the hostages is no longer at the top of the priority list and at the top of the news. How can this be?’ said Herzog in comments made during a conference of the Defense Ministry Rehabilitation Department, quoted by the Israeli press, in which he insisted on the need to maintain efforts to achieve the release of the hostages, “down to the last one”.
‘We must, throughout this entire time, not lose eye contact, as a nation and of course as a governing system, with everything related to bringing the hostages home, down to the last one. This is a national effort,’ Herzog insisted in his statements, made during an international conference that took place in Tel Aviv, in which he also emphasised that the Israeli State does not provide sufficient support to the hostages and their families.
More than half of the hostages held by Hamas are already dead
At least 251 hostages were captured during the massive attack launched by Hamas on Israeli territory on 7 October 2023, which also caused the death of 1,218 Israelis. It is estimated that at least 58 of these hostages are still in the hands of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, of whom 34 are probably dead, according to Israeli intelligence.
In the last 24 hours, the armed wing of the Palestinian group has published a video showing two Israeli hostages – Elkana Bohbot and Yosef Haim Ohana – calling for their immediate release. The Israeli Defence Minister, Israel Katz, has ordered the army to continue operations in Gaza – which in the last week have left around 800 Palestinians dead – and to annex more territory of the enclave, warning Hamas that it ‘will pay an increasingly high price’ if they do not free the hostages.
However, a release of the hostages still in the hands of Hamas seems improbable after the unilateral break of the ceasefire by the Israeli government led by Netanyahu, which is facing massive protests over the resumption of the offensive and, especially, over the consequences this will have for the Israeli hostages.
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Pablo Gómez is a specialist in Turkey and has been editor-in-chief of Hispanatolia since 2011. He has been analysing current affairs and geopolitics in Turkey and the surrounding region since 2006.
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