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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has sought the assistance of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to help hostages in Gaza, amidst growing outrage over videos revealing two of them in an emaciated state. Netanyahu announced on Sunday that he had spoken with the ICRC coordinator for the region, seeking their involvement to ensure food supply to the hostages along with urgent medical care.
Netanyahu “told the families that the efforts to return all our hostages are ongoing”, the statement said.
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The videos make references to the dire humanitarian conditions in Gaza, where United Nations-mandated experts have warned a “famine is unfolding”.
The ICRC expressed being “appalled by the harrowing videos” through a statement, emphasizing their persistent appeal for access to the hostages. In reaction, the armed wing of Hamas indicated their willingness to grant the agency access to the hostages, contingent on the opening of “humanitarian corridors” for food and aid across all regions of the Gaza Strip.
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“Large-scale humanitarian aid must be allowed to reach those in need,” she said.
The al-Qassam Brigades clarified that they did not deliberately starve the hostages, stating the hostages would not be given preferential food treatment “amid the crime of starvation and siege” occurring in Gaza. Meanwhile, families of the hostages convened in Tel Aviv on Saturday, advocating for a ceasefire and the initiation of a hostage release agreement, signifying the 666th day since the October 7 attacks.
On Sunday, Gaza’s civil defence agency reported that Israeli fire resulted in the deaths of nine Palestinians awaiting food rations from a site managed by the U.S. and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) near Rafah in the south. An additional five individuals lost their lives near a separate GHF aid site in central Gaza on the same day, while further Israeli assaults claimed five more lives elsewhere, according to civil defence spokesperson Mahmud Bassal.
