Ariane Ménage (correspondent in Israel) / Photo credits: AMIR LEVY / GETTY IMAGES EUROPE / GETTY IMAGES VIA AFP
100 days after the Hamas attack in Israel, 136 hostages are still in the hands of the terrorists. Many may have been killed in recent days, warned the Hamas spokesperson, who points to Israel’s responsibility. Families remain mobilized. With a 24-hour demonstration, they continue to demand the negotiation of a new release agreement.
Israel is more than ever under pressure from public opinion, 100 days after the Hamas attack. Behind the scenes, under the aegis of Qatar, negotiations continue to free the 136 hostages still held captive by the terrorists. But the only tangible result of the last few weeks is the announced sending of medicine to the hostages. It was a request from the families. They are not happy about it yet. They are waiting, they say, to see proof that their loved ones are actually receiving care. Some of the hostages have health problems, others are seriously injured.
“What is important to them is the war against Hamas”
Time is running out, their loved ones tirelessly remind us, also worried by the fighting which continues to rage in Gaza. The families are demanding that the Israeli government immediately conclude a release agreement.
“It’s not their priority. If it really were, they could have taken a whole series of initiatives. They don’t do it. What’s important to them is the war against Hamas. Three months and a half have passed, bring back the hostages,” castigates Sulik, whose father, Amiram Cooper, 85, is still a hostage of Hamas. Israeli authorities estimate that 136 people are still detained by Hamas in Gaza. Some have died, but they will not appear on this list until their bodies are returned.