Hamas blames Israeli airstrikes for death of six hostages in Gaza

GAZA CITY, Palestine

A senior Hamas official stated on Sunday that the six Israeli hostages recently found in Gaza were killed as a result of ongoing Israeli airstrikes, challenging the Israeli army's claim that Hamas executed the hostages while they were in captivity.

Izzat al-Rishq’s remarks came shortly after the Israeli army announced that it had discovered the bodies of six hostages in Gaza, asserting that they had been killed by Hamas.

“The ones who kill our people daily are the Israeli colonizers with American weapons. The hostages found in Gaza were not killed by us but by the relentless Zionist bombardment,” Rishq said in a statement.

He further criticized the U.S., saying, “If President [Joe] Biden truly cares about the lives of Israeli hostages, he should cease his support for this enemy with money and weapons and pressure Israel to end its aggression immediately.”

Rishq emphasized that Hamas had been more concerned about the lives of the hostages than Biden himself, citing Hamas’ agreement to a cease-fire proposal and the UN Security Council’s resolution, both of which were rejected by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Earlier on Sunday, the Israeli army reported finding the bodies of six hostages in Gaza, adding to the ongoing tension as the war enters its eleventh month. Before the discovery, Israel had stated that 107 hostages remained in Gaza, some of whom were believed to have already been killed.

Hamas has said that dozens of hostages were killed by Israeli airstrikes targeting Gaza.

Israel’s offensive on Gaza, which has continued since an attack by Hamas on October 7, has resulted in nearly 40,700 Palestinian deaths, mostly women and children, according to local health authorities. The conflict has also left Gaza in ruins, with severe shortages of food, clean water, and medicine.

Israel faces genocide accusations at the International Court of Justice, which has ordered an immediate halt to military operations in Rafah, where over one million Palestinians had sought refuge.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi