“Solely 50 Israeli hostages nonetheless alive” –

Solely 50 of the 116 hostages nonetheless held by Hamas within the Gaza Strip for the reason that October 7 assault in Israel might also be alive. The Wall Road Journal writes this, citing US officers. “Of the roughly 250 hostages” taken that day, we learn, “116 stay captive, together with many individuals believed to be lifeless,” and mediators within the hostage talks and an American official say that “the variety of hostages nonetheless alive might possibly be of simply 50″. An evaluation, continues the newspaper, which is partly primarily based on Israeli intelligence info and which might imply that 66 of the folks nonetheless held hostage might possibly be lifeless, 25 greater than what Israel has publicly acknowledged.

Of the 251 folks taken hostage by Hamas on October 7 in southern Israel, the Instances of Israel wrote in latest days, it’s believed that 116 are nonetheless held in Gaza and that at the least 41 of them are lifeless. Through the seven days of truce final November, 105 civilians had been freed, the newspaper recalled, including that 4 hostages had already been freed earlier than the beginning of the truce and that seven had been rescued by the troops. The our bodies of 19 hostages had been returned to Israel, together with these of three folks killed by the army by mistake.

Eight Individuals stay hostage in Gaza, together with three folks lifeless in keeping with Israel, writes the Wall Road Journal immediately, reporting ‘no remark’ from the Israeli prime minister’s workplace and the army, in addition to from the USA, from the director’s workplace of nationwide intelligence. Estimates of the variety of deceased hostages, the newspaper provides, proceed to worsen because of the situations of captivity, the accidents sustained throughout the October 7 assault and different causes.