Latest news with #ElkanaBohbot
Express Tribune
11-05-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
Hamas releases video of hostages
Hamas's armed wing released a video on Saturday showing two Israeli hostages alive in the Gaza Strip, with one of the two men calling to end the 19-month-long war. The pair were identified by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum campaign group as Elkana Bohbot and Yosef Haim Ohana, who were kidnapped during Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that triggered the war. The undated three-minute video footage released by Hamas's Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades shows one of the hostages, 36-year-old Bohbot, visibly weak and lying on the floor wrapped in a blanket.
New York Post
10-05-2025
- Politics
- New York Post
Israel blasts terrorist targets amid increased pressure campaign on Hamas
The Israeli Air Force blasted 60 Hamas terror targets across Gaza into Saturday, intensifying its escalation of offensive operations as cease-fire talks stall. Israeli troops killed at least two armed terrorists in northern Gaza and struck a booby-trapped building where Hamas operatives were in the Morag Corridor in the south, according to the Israel Defense Forces. In the southern city of Rafah, additional terror group infrastructure was destroyed above and below ground, the Israeli military said. Advertisement Some 23 Hamas members were killed and dozens more wounded in the 24-hour aerial barrage, the terror group reportedly said. Earlier this week, Israel approved a new plan to drastically ramp up its military offensive against Hamas over the coming months, seizing all of Gaza, if the terror group refuses to agree to a cease-fire and the releases of hostages by May 16. 4 An Israeli Air Force fighter jet releases flares over the Gaza Strip, seen from southern Israel on Thursday, May 8, 2025. AP Advertisement Israel has imposed a blockade on aid to the region in an attempt to pressure Hamas to release remaining hostages and disarm — warning that the terror organization has siphoned off food and supplies since the war began on Oct. 7, 2023 following its brutal attacks on Israel. On Saturday, Hamas released yet another manipulative propaganda video showing two hostages — Elkana Bohbot and Yosef-Haim Ohana — ahead of a mass Israeli protest calling for the releases of the hostages. The two were abducted during the Nova music festival. 4 An armed Israeli Air Force plane departs from an unknown location in October, 2024. AP Advertisement Hamas released a video of them a month and half ago and has released several videos of Bohbot since then. In response, Elkana Bohbot's family said: 'How much more can we bear? How much more can they bear?' 4 Hamas also published a propaganda showing Israeli hostages Elkana Bohbot and Yosef-Haim Ohana in March. X / @AvivaKlompas 'The fact that they are still there – it's a disgrace,' the family added, according to the Jerusalem Post. 'Elkana and Yosef are crying out to be rescued.' Advertisement Only 25 of the remaining 59 hostages still being held by Hamas are believed to be alive\ 4 Elkana Bohbot seen with his wife, Rivka, and their 4-year-old son. Obtained by NY Post Families of other hostages also made emotional pleas, many pushing for a cease-fire. 'Don't give up on us,' said Mtah Zangauker, — mother of hostage Einav Zangauker — calling on President Trump specifically. 'Those who came back did so thanks to President Trump,' she added. 'And we need him to stay involved until the last hostage is brought home.'
Belfast Telegraph
10-05-2025
- Health
- Belfast Telegraph
Israeli airstrikes kill 23 in Gaza as outcry over aid blockade grows
The bombardment continued as international warnings grow over Israeli plans to control aid distribution in Gaza, as Israel's blockade on the territory of more than two million people is in its third month. The UN and aid groups have rejected Israel's aid distribution moves, including a plan from a group of US security contractors, ex-military officers and humanitarian aid officials calling itself the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Among the 23 bodies taken to hospitals over the past 24 hours were those of the family of five whose tent was struck in Gaza City's Sabra district, Gaza's health ministry said. Another Israeli strike late on Friday hit a warehouse belonging to UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, in the northern area of Jabaliya. Four people were killed, according to the Indonesian Hospital, where bodies were taken. AP video showed fires burning in the shattered building. The warehouse was empty after being hit and raided multiple times during Israeli ground offensives against Hamas fighters over the past year, said residents. Israel's military said nine soldiers were lightly wounded on Friday by an explosive device while searching Gaza City's Shijaiyah neighbourhood. It said they were evacuated to a hospital in Israel. Israel resumed its bombardment in Gaza on March 18, shattering a two-month ceasefire with Hamas. Ground troops have seized more than half the territory and have been conducting raids and searching parts of northern Gaza and the southernmost city of Rafah. Large parts of both areas have been flattened by months of Israeli operations. Under Israel's blockade, charity kitchens are virtually the only source of food left in Gaza, but dozens have shut down in recent days as food supplies run out. Aid groups say more closures are imminent. Israel has said the blockade is meant to pressure Hamas to release remaining hostages and disarm. Rights groups have called the blockade a 'starvation tactic' and a potential war crime. Israel accuses Hamas and other militants of siphoning off aid in Gaza, though it has not presented evidence for its claims. The UN denies significant diversion takes place, saying it monitors distribution. The 19-month-old war in Gaza is the most devastating ever fought between Israel and Hamas. It has killed more than 52,800 people there, more than half of them women and children, and wounded more than 119,000, according to the health ministry. The ministry's count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. Israel says it has killed thousands of militants, without giving evidence. Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas after the October 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel in which militants killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapped more than 250 others. Hamas still holds about 59 hostages, with around a third believed to still be alive. Hamas released a video on Saturday showing hostages Elkana Bohbot and Yosef-Haim Ohana, who appeared to be under duress. They were abducted during the October 7 attack from a music festival where more than 300 people were killed. Hamas released a video of them a month and half ago and has released several videos of Mr Bohbot alone since then.
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Hamas releases video of two Israeli hostages alive in Gaza
Hamas's armed wing released a video on Saturday showing two Israeli hostages alive in the Gaza Strip, with one of the two men calling to end the 19-month-long war. The pair were identified by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum campaign group as Elkana Bohbot and Yosef Haim Ohana, who were kidnapped during Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that triggered the war. The undated three-minute video footage released by Hamas's Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades shows one of the hostages, 36-year-old Bohbot, visibly weak and lying on the floor wrapped in a blanket. The second hostage, Ohana, 24, speaks in Hebrew urging the Israeli government to end the war in Gaza and secure the release of all remaining captives -- a similar message to statements made by other hostages, likely under duress, in previous videos released by Hamas. In a statement, Bohbot's family said that "Elkana and Yosef are crying out to be saved. While all the people of Israel hear their calls, a handful of decision-makers refuse to listen," echoing criticism of the Israeli government for failing to bring back the hostages. "How much more can we bear? How much more can they endure? The fact that they are still there is a disgrace," the family said. Late Saturday, Israeli demonstrators calling for the release of the hostages and an end of the war gathered outside the defence ministry headquarters in the coastal city of Tel Aviv. AFP images showed some protesters holding pictures of the hostages and placards that read "we can save the rest" and "all of them now". - Uncertainty - Bohbot, a Colombian-Israeli, was seen bound and injured in the face in footage from the day of the Hamas attack, and his family have expressed concern about his health. Bohbot and Ohana, both abducted by Palestinian militants from the site of a music festival, are among 58 hostages held in Gaza since the 2023 attack, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead. Hamas also holds the remains of an Israeli soldier killed in a 2014 war. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that the fate of three hostages presumed alive was unclear, without naming them. "We know with certainty that 21 hostages are alive... and there are three others whose status, sadly, we do not know," Netanyahu said in a video shared on his Telegram channel. Israel resumed its military offensive across the Gaza Strip on March 18, after a two-month truce that saw the release of dozens of hostages. Since the ceasefire collapsed, Hamas has released several videos of hostages, including of the two appearing in Saturday's video. Israel says the renewed offensive aims to force Hamas to free the remaining captives, although critics charge that it puts them in mortal danger. Hamas's October 2023 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said on Saturday that at least 2,701 people have been killed since Israel resumed its campaign in Gaza, bringing the overall death toll since the war broke out to 52,810. str-reg-csp/ami
L'Orient-Le Jour
10-05-2025
- Politics
- L'Orient-Le Jour
Hamas releases new video of Israeli hostages
The al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, released a new video on the Telegram network showing two Israeli hostages. Undated, the clip shows Elkana Bohbot and Yossef-Haim Ohana, reportedly abducted in Israel during the attack carried out by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023. The two captives are visibly in an underground cell. One of the hostages speaks vehemently to the camera, addressing Israeli leaders, particularly Sarah Netanyahu, the wife of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. "How many of us have to die? Why do you continue to bomb us and the civilians? Enough ... it's time to end this war!" he exclaimed. He also described the situation of his fellow detainee, who appears unconscious under a blanket, "in a very difficult medical and psychological state." "He keeps harming himself. He doesn't want to drink or eat anymore," he said while pointing to him, before the video ends with the message: "Only a cease-fire will bring them back alive," accompanied by a ticking clock. The Forum of Hostage Families and Missing stated that the families have not yet approved the broadcasting of this video in Israel, reported Haaretz. According to the Israeli army, Hamas still holds 58 hostages in Gaza, 34 of whom are believed to be dead. A Hamas delegation held discussions on Wednesday and Thursday in Doha, Qatar with Egyptian and Qatari mediators to reach a cease-fire in Gaza, but with "no tangible progress," two sources close to the Palestinian movement told AFP on Friday, while the Israeli government approved a plan this week for the total conquest of the Palestinian enclave. Since the resumption of the Israeli offensive on March 18, unilaterally breaking the cease-fire agreed upon in mid-January with Hamas, which had allowed the return of around 30 hostages, the Gaza Strip has been subjected to a total blockade preventing the entry of any humanitarian aid for more than 100 days. According to estimates from the Ministry of Health, 23 Palestinians were killed and 124 injured over the last 24 hours. The ministry updated its count of the official number of Palestinians killed since the start of the Israeli offensive against Gaza, reporting 52,810 deaths and over 119,400 injuries, the majority of whom are civilians, while more than 11,000 remain missing under the rubble.
