By Joel Leyden
Israel News Agency / Jewish News Agency
March 21, 2024 — Jerusalem, Israel …. Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, this evening, approved the departure of an Israeli delegation, led by Israel Mossad Director David Barnea, tomorrow, for Qatar to meet with CIA Director William Burns, Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abd Al Thani and Egyptian Intelligence Minister Abbas Kamel in order to advance the release of the Israeli hostages.
The meeting of senior officials will be held in the framework of the negotiations in Doha, the goal of which is to advance the efforts to return the hostages.
The Palestinian terrorists who invaded Israel, breaking a ceasefire in the Hamas massacre on Oct. 7 murdered over 1,200 people, and kidnapped over 240 civilians and soldiers, bringing them back to the Gaza Strip.
Jewish hostages held in Gaza by Hamas and their leaders in Qatar, are still enduring sexual violence.
After surviving unthinkable violence, many women have bravely shared their traumatic stories with the world. They decided to shine a light on their horrific experiences so that others will know they aren’t alone. But instead of applause for their courage and bravery, they faced scrutiny, threats and dismissal.
Despite overwhelming evidence of Hamas’ use of sexual and gender-based violence as a weapon of war on and since Oct. 7 − including a recent and long overdue report from the United Nations finding evidence of sexual abuse at the Nova Music Festival, Road 232 and Kibbutz Re’im − survivors have been ignored and belittled.
Israeli officials say that at least 31 of the 134 remaining hostages in Gaza have died since the beginning of the Hamas war – about one-fifth of the total number of captives. The IDF said that most of the dead were murdered on October 7, and their families have been privately informed.
Each of these numbers shatters the heart.
These numbers, depicting the tragedy, are forever carved into our hearts and our nightmares. We must make sure not to add any more numbers to this list and bring them home. Now! pic.twitter.com/R0tZmDTHwA— Bring Them Home Now (@bringhomenow) March 20, 2024
The first group of Israeli hostages was released on November 24, which included 13 women and children, the youngest being two years old and the oldest being 85. They were turned over by Hamas to the International Committee of the Red Cross, who transported them from Gaza into Egypt and then flown into Israel. In addition, 10 Thai nationals and one Filipino, who were also taken hostage by Hamas on October 7 were also released.
On November 25, the second group of hostages was released after a delay by the terror group Hamas that lasted several hours and threatened to shatter the fragile deal. Four Thai nationals were also released. The second group of 13 Israeli hostages – all women and children – included six members of an extended family from Kibbutz Be’eri, where Hamas terrorists slaughtered more than 130 people on October 7.
On November 26, 14 Israelis, including the first U.S. citizen, and three Thai nationals were released by Hamas.
On November 27, 11 Israeli hostages were released. All of the hostages were abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz during the Hamas massacre.
“They were drugged, they were treated so bad, but at least they are with us,” Yaniv Yaakov said in an event alongside Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen.
After the truce was extended by two days, 12 hostages were released on November 28 – 10 Israelis and two Thai nationals. Of the 10 released, 8 of them were elderly women, and one teenage girl and her mother were released. Most of the hostages released were from Kibbutz Nir Oz, where nearly half of the 400 residents were murdered or abducted by Hamas terrorists on October 7.
On the seventh day of the truce between Israel and Hamas, the terror group released eight Israeli hostages from captivity.
Hamas also released a propaganda video regarding the Bibas family. The family – father Yarden, mother Shiri, and their sons Ariel, 4, and baby Kfir – were abducted on October 7. The terror group, in an unverified claim, said on November 29 that Shiri, Ariel, and Kfir had been killed during an Israeli bombardment. The video released by Hamas appeared to show Yarden Bibas alive. It is believed that Yarden has been held separately from the rest of his family.
Israel Defense Forces Spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari refuted the claims by Hamas.
“The Hamas terrorist organization presented harsh documentation of Yarden Bibas,” Hagari said. “Our hearts are with the entire Bibas family. We will continue to return all our captives.
“Hamas employs psychological terror against the families of the captives,” Hagari added. “Its purpose is to exert pressure, to harm our resilience.”
Kfir, who was only 10 months old when he was kidnapped, is the youngest hostage being held by Hamas.