 "Palestinians sift through the rubble of a building hit by an Israeli airstrike that killed at least 17 people, including some from the same family, in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, on Friday. AP")
Hamas warned on Friday that Israel’s offensive in Gaza is creating a “highly dangerous” situation for the hostages held there, noting that half of the surviving captives are in areas where the military has issued evacuation orders.
“Half of the living Israeli (hostages) are located in areas that the Israeli occupation army has requested to be evacuated in recent days,” AFP quoted Abu Obeida, spokesman for Hamas’s armed wing, as saying in a statement.
“We have decided not to transfer these (hostages)… but (this situation) is highly dangerous to their lives,” he added.
Since the renewed military operations last month ended a brief truce with Hamas, Israel has intensified its efforts to seize territory in the Gaza Strip, claiming this strategy aims to pressure militants into releasing hostages.
In Gaza City, the Israeli army said that ground troops are active in the Shujaiya area “to expand the security zone” established within Palestinian territory.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the military is dividing Gaza and “seizing territory” to compel Hamas to release the remaining Israeli hostages taken during the October 2023 attack that ignited the conflict.
Out of 251 individuals abducted during the Hamas attack, 58 are still held hostages in Gaza, including 34 whom the military has declared dead.
The Israeli military announced on Thursday that it has targeted over 600 “terror sites” in the Gaza Strip since the offensive resumed on March 18.
The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said 1,249 people have been killed since Israel resumed intense bombing last month, bringing the overall death toll since the war began to 50,609.
The October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that sparked the war resulted in 1,218 deaths, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.
Israel has also ramped up attacks on Syria and Lebanon, coinciding with a visit from a US envoy. This follows a pre-dawn strike on Sidon that resulted in the death of a Hamas commander.
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More ShortsWith inputs from agencies