Israeli army says 136 hostages remain in Gaza

JERUSALEM

The Israeli army on Friday said that 136 hostages remained in the Gaza Strip.

In a news conference, Israeli army spokesperson Daniel Hagari said: “136 Israelis are still held in the Gaza Strip, including 3 civilians who were initially reported missing but later turned out to be among the hostages held in Gaza.”

“We continue to work with all intelligence and operational efforts to create the conditions for their return,” Hagari added.

Hagari’s remarks statement after recent statistics published by Israeli officials and media indicated that there are 129 hostages held in the Gaza Strip, suggesting conflicting reports about the actual number of hostages.



*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala