Hamas Ready to Cooperate with ICRC If Israel Opens Humanitarian Corridors in Gaza
Hamas statements came in response to the harsh criticism from Western leaders after releasing videos showing Israeli hostages in a visibly emaciated and fragile state. Hostage Videos
On Thursday, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad released video of Rom Braslavski, in which he appeared thin and crying due to lack of food and water. Then, on Saturday, Hamas published video of emaciated Evyatar David, digging a hole 'for his own grave,' reported Reuters.
The videos sparked fierce reaction from Israel and Western leaders. Israel accused Hamas of starving hostages, with the Israeli Foreign Ministry announcing that the UN Security Council will hold a special session on Tuesday morning to discuss the situation of the hostages in Gaza.
Moreover, countries such as France, Germany, the UK and the US condemned the videos, with French President, Emmanuel Macron, calling them 'unbearable' and German Chancellor, Friedrich Merz, arguing that the images 'show that Hamas should have no role in Gaza's future.'
The ICRC in Israel and the Occupied Territories also said it was 'appalled' by the videos, urging that the 'dire situation must come to an end.' An Appeal to ICRC
Israeli officials believe that Hamas is holding 50 hostages in Gaza, only 20 of whom are still alive. The Palestinian group has banned humanitarian organizations' access to the hostages and their families have no information about their condition.
After the release of the videos, the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, spoke with the ICRC's regional head on Sunday, requesting 'his involvement in the immediate provision of food and medical care for the hostages,' reported CNN citing Netanyahu's office.
The office also reiterated denial of starvation in Gaza, despite the UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) warning that the 'worst-case scenario of famine' is 'now unfolding' in Gaza. Hamas Conditions
In response, Hamas said it was ready to 'deal positively' with the ICRC but on the condition that Israel opens humanitarian corridors into Gaza on a regular and permanent basis and halts airstrikes during the distribution of aid.
Furthermore, the Palestinian movement said that the emaciated state of the hostages reflected the worsening conditions in the Strip.
In the light of this, the spokesperson of al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas' military wing, Abu Obeida, said that Hamas does not intentionally starve the hostages, adding that they eat the same food that the general Gaza population and the group's fighters eat. 'They will not receive any special privileges amid the crime of starvation and siege,' he noted. Hunger Crisis
Gaza is enduring a worsening starvation crisis, with malnutrition-related deaths spiking in July. The World Health Organization (WHO) warned last week that malnutrition rates in the enclave reached 'alarming levels,' with more than 5,000 children under five admitted for outpatient treatment of malnutrition in just the first two weeks of July.
According to Gaza's Health Ministry, starvation and malnutrition inflicted by the war have claimed the lives of 175 Palestinians in the enclave, including 93 children, as of Sunday, August 3, 2025. Meanwhile, the war's death toll has exceeded 60,800.
Moreover, 1,487 Palestinian aid seekers have been killed by Israeli gunfire while trying to collect food supplies from aid distribution sites and more than 10,500 others have been injured. Gaza Ceasefire Stalemate
Ceasefire talks to end the war in Gaza have reached a deadlock, after the US and Israel pulled their negotiating teams from Doha, saying they would consider alternatives. Israel has put Hamas' disarmament as one of the key conditions to reach a ceasefire in Gaza, but the Palestinian movement firmly rejects that demand.
During a recent visit to Israel, the US Special Envoy, Steve Witkoff, told the hostage families that Washington was working with the Israeli government on a plan to end the war in Gaza, saying Hamas expressed it willingness to abandon its arms.
However, Hamas dismissed Witkoff's claims, insisting that it would not abandon 'armed resistance' unless an 'independent, fully sovereign Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital' was established.
Meanwhile, Hamas has emphasized its commitment to ceasefire and hostage release talks, but on the condition that the humanitarian situation in Gaza improves.
'It is essential to improve the catastrophic humanitarian situation significantly and to obtain a written response from the enemy regarding our response. This is a condition to go back to negotiations,' Basem Naim, a senior Hamas political official, told CNN
Short link :
Post Views: 70
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
2 hours ago
- Arab News
Israel detects missile launch from Yemen, working to intercept it
The Israeli military said early on Tuesday it identified the launch of a missile from Yemen toward Israel with aerial defense systems operating to intercept the threat.
Arab News
4 hours ago
- Arab News
Canada says it delivered additional humanitarian assistance to Gaza
The Canadian government said on Monday it delivered additional humanitarian assistance to Gaza, which has been under a devastating Israeli military assault for almost 22 months after the deadly October 2023 Hamas attack. 'The (Canadian Armed Forces) employed a CC-130J Hercules aircraft to conduct an airdrop of critical humanitarian aid in support of Global Affairs Canada into the Gaza Strip. The air drop consisted of 21,600 pounds of aid,' the Canadian government said in a statement. Canada said last week it plans to recognize the State of Palestine at a meeting of the United Nations in September, ratcheting up pressure on Israel as starvation spreads in Gaza.
Asharq Al-Awsat
4 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Netanyahu Leaning Toward Seizing the Whole of Gaza
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is leaning toward expanding the offensive in Gaza and seizing the entire enclave, Israel's Channel 12 cited an official from his office as saying on Monday. Netanyahu will convene his security cabinet this week to decide on Israel's next steps in Gaza following the collapse of indirect ceasefire talks with Hamas, with one senior Israeli source suggesting more force could be an option. Last Saturday, during a visit to the country, US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff had said he was working with the Israeli government on a plan that would effectively end the war in Gaza. But Israeli officials have also floated ideas including expanding the military offensive in Gaza and annexing parts of the shattered enclave. The failed ceasefire talks in Doha had aimed to clinch agreements on a US-backed proposal for a 60-day truce, during which aid would be flown into Gaza and half of the hostages Hamas is holding would be freed in exchange for Palestinian prisoners jailed in Israel. After Netanyahu met Witkoff last Thursday, a senior Israeli official said that "an understanding was emerging between Washington and Israel," of a need to shift from a truce to a comprehensive deal that would "release all the hostages, disarm Hamas, and demilitarize the Gaza Strip," - Israel's key conditions for ending the war. A source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Sunday that the envoy's visit was seen in Israel as "very significant." But later on Sunday, the Israeli official signaled that pursuit of a deal would be pointless, threatening more force: "An understanding is emerging that Hamas is not interested in a deal and therefore the prime minister is pushing to release the hostages while pressing for military defeat." 'STRATEGIC CLARITY' What a "military defeat" might mean, however, is up for debate within the Israeli leadership. Some Israeli officials have suggested that Israel might declare it was annexing parts of Gaza as a means to pressure the group. Others, like Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir want to see Israel impose military rule in Gaza before annexing it and re-establishing the Jewish settlements Israel evicted 20 years ago. The Israeli military, which has pushed back at such ideas throughout the war, was expected on Tuesday to present alternatives that include extending into areas of Gaza where it has not yet operated, according to two defense officials. While some in the political leadership are pushing for expanding the offensive, the military is concerned that doing so will endanger the 20 hostages who are still alive, the officials said. Israeli Army Radio reported on Monday that military chief Eyal Zamir has become increasingly frustrated with what he describes as a lack of strategic clarity by the political leadership, concerned about being dragged into a war of attrition with Hamas. A spokesperson for the Israel army declined to comment on the report but said that the military has plans in store. "We have different ways to fight the terror organization, and that's what the army does," Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani said. On Tuesday, Qatar and Egypt endorsed a declaration by France and Saudi Arabia outlining steps toward a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which included a call on Hamas to hand over its arms to the Western-backed Palestinian Authority. Hamas has repeatedly said it won't lay down arms. But it has told mediators it was willing to quit governance in Gaza for a non-partisan ruling body, according to three Hamas officials. It insists that the post-war Gaza arrangement must be agreed upon among the Palestinians themselves and not dictated by foreign powers. Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar suggested on Monday that the gaps were still too wide to bridge. "We would like to have all our hostages back. We would like to see the end of this war. We always prefer to get there by diplomatic means, if possible. But of course, the big question is, what will be the conditions for the end of the war?" he told journalists in Jerusalem.
