The resumption of heavy Israeli strikes in Gaza immediately cast into question the status of the remaining hostages held there by Hamas and other groups — with fewer than half of the 59 left still thought to be alive, according to the Israeli government.
A recent New York Times analysis showed that at least 41 hostages had died during their captivity by Hamas and its allies. Of the 251 people seized and taken into Gaza during the attacks on Oct. 7, 2023, 130 or more hostages have been released. The Israeli military has retrieved the bodies of at least 40 others.
In January, Israel and Hamas agreed to a multi-stage truce that would allow for the exchange of Hamas-captured hostages in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners jailed by Israel.
The first phase of the cease-fire ended in early March. Hamas released 30 Israeli and foreign hostages and handed over eight bodies, in exchange for the Israeli release of over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners. Several hostages had already been rescued or released before the two sides reached the agreement.
The fate of the cease-fire was unclear, though, after Israel resumed heavy strikes into Gaza on Tuesday, citing Hamas’s repeated refusal to release the remaining hostages. Earlier this month, President Trump sent warnings to Hamas militants to immediately release the remaining hostages in Gaza or face death.
Hamas accused Israel early Tuesday of overturning the cease-fire, “exposing the prisoners in Gaza to an unknown fate.”
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