Israel Defence Forces says it fear for lives of two hostages after Hamas released video

Israel Defence Forces spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari has said that the military, several days ago, informed the families of two hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip that it fears for their lives, based on new intelligence, The Times of Israel reported.
Over the past day, Hamas released videos showing hostages Itay Svirsky, Noa Argamani, and another hostage, whose family requested that he not be named. The latest propaganda video released on Monday sparked concerns regarding Svirsky and the third hostage.
The IDF believes that Noa Argamani is alive. Hagari stated that Hamas’ statement that the Israeli military targeted a building where three Israeli hostages were being held, killing Svirsky, was a lie. However, he indicated the possibility that the hostages were located near a building that was hit by the IDF and may have been endangered.
Hagari said, “Utay was not killed by our forces. This is a Hamas lie.” He said, “The building where they were held was not a target and was not attacked by our forces,” according to The Times of Israel report.
IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said, “We did not know their exact location in real-time. We do not strike where we know there are hostages. In retrospect, we know that we attacked targets close to the location where they were held,” adding that the IDF was carrying out a probe into the footage in the propaganda video released by Hamas.
On October 7, thousands of terrorists entered the border from Gaza by land, air and sea, killing some 1,200 people and seizing over 240 captives of all ages. Itay Svirsky (38) was abducted from his parents’ home in Kibbutz Be’eri, where he was visiting to celebrate the Simhat Torah holiday. Hamas terrorists murdered both his parents, while his grandmother, Aviva Sela, managed to survive the attack.
The IDF spokesperson said, “In recent days, IDF representatives met with the families of Itay and the other hostage and expressed grave concern for their fate, due to information we had,” The Times of Israel reported.
Noa Argamani (26) was abducted from the Supernova music festival near Kibbutz Re’im on the morning of October 7. A video of Argamani’s abduction was one of the first to be released on the internet, as Hamas terrorists killed some 360 partygoers and abducted dozens more.
As many as 105 civilians were released from Hamas captivity during the November truce, and it is believed that 132 hostages abducted by Hamas on October 7 remain in Gaza, not all of them alive.
Before that, four hostages were released, and one was rescued by soldiers. The bodies of eight hostages have also been recovered, and three hostages were mistakenly killed by the military. The Israel Defence Forces have confirmed the deaths of 25 of those still held by Hamas, citing new intelligence and findings obtained by troops operating in Gaza. One more person has been listed as missing since October 7, and their fate remains unknown.
Hamas is also holding two Israeli civilians, Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, who are both thought to be alive after entering the Gaza Strip of their own accord in 2014 and 2015, respectively, and remains of fallen IDF soldiers Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin since 2014, the report said.
Hagari said, “Even in these difficult times, we are in constant contact with the families, updating them with the details we know about their loved ones. We will continue to update them with every detail of verified information we have, and then the public as well.” (ANI)