Buildings razed in Gaza City’s Shejaiya neighborhood, as part of the army’s efforts to establish a buffer zone on the border with the Gaza Strip, in an image provided by the IDF on January 10, 2024. The Israel-Gaza border runs across the bottom of the picture. (Israel Defense Forces.)
Hamas has demanded that Israel release all operatives of the terror group’s elite Nukhba forces who were captured on October 7 in return for the release of the hostages held captive in Gaza, the Kan public broadcaster reports.
The Nukhba forces are the terror group’s elite fighters, and they were the first to enter Israel on October 7, when thousands of terrorists poured through the Gaza border, slaughtering some 1,200 people and seizing 253 hostages.
Hamas’s demand is reportedly being discussed by Israeli officials, although no decision has been made on the matter, Kan reports.
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Gantz, Eisenkot examine limiting aid to Gaza to pressure non-Hamas body to take over distribution – report.
War cabinet ministers Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot are examining the possibility of limiting the entry of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip for a short period of time until the distribution of aid is no longer controlled by Hamas, Channel 12 reports.
The two ministers reportedly believe that limiting the entry of aid for a short amount of time will place pressure on an alternative body to take responsibility for distribution of the aid among the enclave’s civilians.
In addition, the limited entry of aid could increase pressure on Hamas to release the hostages still held captive in the Strip, the report adds.
