At least 13 Israeli and foreign hostages held in the Gaza Strip have been killed in Israeli air strikes in the past 24 hours, Hamas’s armed wing says.
“Thirteen prisoners… including foreigners” were killed in five locations targeted by Israeli fighter jets, the Izzedine al-Qassam Brigades said in a statement.
Hamas took about 150 people captive when it launched its surprise attack on 7 October. It has threatened to kill hostages if civilians homes are bombed by Israel without warning.
As the reports came in, UK Defence Secretary Grant Shapps told ITV he would treat the claims with “caution” but “deep concern”.
Channah Peri, 79, and her son Nadav Popplewell, 51, were taken hostage by Hamas, said Channah’s daughter Ayelet Svatitzky, who was speaking to them on the phone when the gunmen burst in. She said the militants sent pictures of her two relatives, who both have diabetes, with armed men in the background.
Liri Elbag, 18, had just started military training as an Army lookout near the Gaza border when Hamas attacked, her father Eli told the Associated Press. Eli said he saw her in a video circulated later by Hamas, crowded with others on the back of a military truck which had been seized by the gunmen.
Jordan Roman-Gat, a 36-year-old German-Israeli citizen, was kidnapped with her husband and young child by Hamas from Be’eri, a kibbutz in southern Israel. She, her husband Alon, and three-year-old Gefen escaped when the car briefly stopped, but Jordan became separated from the others, relatives told CNN, adding they fear she may have been recaptured.
Ohad and Ethan Vahalomy were abducted from their kibbutz, according to Ohad’s mother, Esther. She said her daughter-in-law and two of her granddaughters managed to escape when five gunmen burst into their home, but Ohad and 12-year-old Ethan were taken.
Ditza Heiman, 84, was seen by a neighbour at the Nir Oz kibbutz being led away by Hamas gunmen, her niece said. A former social worker, she is the widow of Zvi Shdaimah, who came to the UK on the Kindertransport, the organised rescue of children from Nazi-controlled areas during World War Two.
Dror Or, his wife Yonat, son Noam and daughter Alma were seen by a neighbour being dragged out of their home in the Be’eri kibbutz, according to their nephew Emmanuel Besorai. There has been no contact since, he said. Noam is aged 15 and Alma 13.
Dr Shoshan Haran, her husband Avshal Haran, daughter Adi Shoham, her partner Tal Shoham and their children, Naveh and Yahel, were kidnapped from their home in the Bari kibbutz, according to the non-profit she founded, Fair Planet. Fair Planet said they lost contact with Dr Haran after the attack by Hamas, but Avshal’s phone was tracked to Gaza and they believe the whole family was taken. Avshal is aged 65, Naveh is aged eight and Yahel is three.
Yaffa Adar, 85, was kidnapped from a kibbutz close to the border with Gaza. Her granddaughter Adva found a video of her being taken to Gaza, surrounded by four armed men.
Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23, from California, was seen by witnesses being loaded onto a truck by Hamas militants, his family told the Los Angeles Times. He was badly injured and unconscious, the witnesses said, and his last known phone location showed him on the border with Gaza.
Shiri, Yarden, Ariel and Kfir Bibas are believed to have been abducted from the kibbutz in southern Israel where they lived and where Shiri was a kindergarten teacher. Shiri was pictured holding Ariel, aged 3, and 9-month-old Kfir, surrounded by Hamas militants.
Yossi and Margit Silberman, Shiri’s parents, are also missing and thought to have been captured.
Carmella and Noya Dan with Ofer, Erez and Sahar Calderon were taken prisoner in Nir Oz, a kibbutz next to Gaza where they lived. A video on social media appeared to show 12-year-old Erez being taken by gunmen towards Gaza, their relative Ido Dan told the BBC, who said he also feared for the health of 80-year-old Carmella without her medication.
Judith Tai Raanan and Natalie Raanan, a mother and daughter from Illinois, USA, were visiting relatives in the Nahal Oz kibbutz when it was attacked. A neighbour told the family they saw Hamas militants take Judith and Natalie, 17, from the house, ABC7 in Chicago reported.
The parents of Sharone Lifschitz – a London-based artist, who asked for them not to be identified for fear of reprisals – are believed to have been taken hostage from Nir Oz, a kibbutz about 400m from the border with Gaza. Ms Lifschitz said her father speaks Arabic and spent his time in retirement driving Palestinians who needed medical treatment to hospital.
Ada Sagi, 74, is also believed to have been abducted from her home in Nir Oz. Her son, Noam, said Israeli soldiers found bloodstains but no sign of his mother and she was not among those killed or injured in the small community.
Doron, Raz and Aviv Asher were taken captive while staying with relatives near the Gaza border. Husband Yoni saw a video of his wife and daughters, aged 5 and 3, being loaded onto a truck with other hostages. He also traced her mobile phone to Gaza.
Shani Louk, a tourist from Germany, had been attending a festival near the Gaza border when Hamas militants stormed the area, opening fire and sending terrified partygoers fleeing through the desert. Her mother, Ricarda, said she had seen a video of Shani after she was taken and later said she had information that Shani was in a critical condition in Gaza following a head injury.
Noa Argamani, a Chinese-born Israeli citizen, was also kidnapped from the festival. Video footage – verified by her father Yaakov Argamani to Israel’s Channel 12 – shows the 25-year-old being taken away on the back of a militant’s motorbike screaming, “Don’t kill me!”
Sagui Dekel-Chen, an American-Israeli citizen, has been missing since Hamas’s attack on the Nir Oz kibbutz, his father Jonathan told the BBC. Jonathan said his son was not found among the dead and the “only reasonable explanation” is that he was taken to Gaza.
Anucha Angkaew, a Thai national who had worked on an avocado farm for almost two years, was seen in a video published by Hamas. His wife, Wanida Maarsa, identified him to BBC Thai.
Boonthom Phankhong and Nattawaree “Yo” Moonkan, who are husband and wife, were working at a mushroom packing factory near Gaza when Hamas militants burst in and began firing, according to Thai TV reports. Yo, aged 35, screamed while everyone else was hiding and was taken along with her husband, 45.
O-wat Suriyasri was pictured with his hands tied behind his back as armed Hamas militants looked on, in a photo sent by a colleague to his family, according to Thai TV reports. He has a child with his wife back in Thailand.
Manee Jirachat, who travelled to Israel for work four years ago, was seized by Hamas militants along with five other workers who had taken cover together, according to a Thai TV interview with his father, who had spoken to survivors.
Natthaporn Onkaew, Komkrit Chombua, Parinya Taemklang, Pattanayuth Tonsokri, Kiattisak “Top” Patee and a Mr Pongtorn (no first name given) were all named by the Thai foreign ministry as hostages. Thailand said 14 of its nationals in total were captured.
Source: BBC News