Israel notifies families of 95 hostages held by terrorists in Gaza Strip

Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said the military has so far notified families of 97 hostages who were being held by terrorists in the Gaza Strip, The Times of Israel reported.

Coordinator for the Captives and Missing Brigadier General (Ret.) Gal Hirsch said that forces during the fighting are making three efforts which include intelligence-operational effort, an effort to formulate an assessment of the situation regarding the captives and missing and the effort to assist the families of the people who have been kept captive or are missing.

In a statement posted on X Israeli Prime Minister office said, "Coordinator for the Captives & Missing Brig.-Gen. (Ret.) Gal Hirsch : "Dear families, even during the fighting, we are making three main efforts: 1. The intelligence-operational effort 2. An effort to formulate an assessment of the situation regarding the captives and missing.

Israeli PM's office in the post on X stated, "Government effort to assist the families of the captives and missing The searches in the field are continuing and the difficult work of identifying the bodies continues. Many of those who were injured are being treated in hospital and we are investigating every piece of information that could assist us in locating the missing."

Brigadier-General (Ret.) Gal Hirsch said he spoke with US Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens and deputy Steven Gillen, who is specially travelling to Israel.

Hirsch said, "I spoke with US Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens and today I will meet his deputy, Steven Gillen, who is specially coming to Israel. The warm ties, the heartfelt concern and American commitment to assist in every way possible is very important to us."

He noted that many Israelis are contacting the military with offers to help and volunteer. He stated that he was moved by the "strong spirit" of Israelis during the fighting. Hirsch noted that he and his staff are working round the clock for the missing, captives and their families.

Meanwhile, Israeli Defence Minister Yaov Gallant has briefed the 31 Defence Ministers at the NATO meeting of Defence Ministers held this morning in Brussels, Israel-based i24 News English reported. He spoke about the atrocities committed by Hamas against children, women, men and the elderly.

"We have been hit hard. Yet make no mistake - 2023 is not 1943. We are the same Jews, but we have different capabilities. The State of Israel is strong. We are united and powerful" Gallant said in his briefing, i24 News English reported.

At the briefing, Gallant also showed an uncensored video of some of the attacks against Israeli civilians and soldiers as well as foreign nationals to NATO Defence Ministers.

Israeli Defence Forces has said that Hamas brought ISIS flags to massacre Israeli children, women and men.

In a post shared on X, Israeli Defence Forces stated, "Hamas brought ISIS flags to massacre Israeli children, women and men. Hamas is a genocidal terrorist organization. Hamas is worse than ISIS."

The death toll in Israel since the Hamas attack has jumped to 1,300 and some 3300 have been injured, including 28 in critical condition and 350 in serious condition, The Times of Israel reported citing Hebrew media reports. The fate of an estimated 150 people abducted and taken to the Gaza Strip during the attack by Hamas is still unclear, the report said.