How many Israelis are still held hostage by Hamas?

Israel this week announced recovering the bodies of six hostages abducted by Hamas operatives during their October 7 raids on Israeli territories. Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the bodies were retrieved during a “complex operation” into Hamas-built tunnels beneath the city of Gaza.  

Israel’s National Institute of Forensic Medicine identified the deceased captives as Yagev Buchshtav, 35; Nadav Popplewell, 51; Alexander Dancyg, 76; Avraham Munder, 79; Yoram Metzger, 80; and Chaim Perry, 80.

Till date, Israel has identified 56 hostages as dead in Gaza allegedly under the Hamas watch. It has additionally identified 65 people believed to be in Hamas’s captivity in Gaza.

Like the current case of six deceased hostages, it is unclear how or when those held captive by Hamas have died over the past 10 months. Hamas often accuses Israel of killing some of the captives during strikes on Gaza.  

At least on one occasion, Israel’s military admitted to the death of hostages during operation in the Gaza area. In June, military spokesperson Daniel Hagari identified four hostages who were believed to have been killed while Israeli forces were operating in the area.

So, how many hostages are still with Hamas?

Let’s start from the beginning. In official figures, 251 Israelis and people of other nationalities were abducted during the Hamas raids in October last year. The number of hostages vary in reports depending on the source and context of information as Israel counts four persons who were taken prisoners by Hamas during 2014-15 among hostages.

Israel has rescued only seven captives alive. This happened during a special mission that Israeli forces carried out in June. More than 200 Palestinians were killed in that Israeli military operation.  

More than 115 hostages have been freed alive by Hamas in different prisoner exchange deals. When the last batch of prisoners were freed in June, the tally reached 116 as four Israelis were rescued from Gaza.

• Of all the freed hostages, 78 have been Israeli women and children, who were released as part of a deal between Israel and Hamas.  

• Three Russian-Israeli dual citizens — two women and one man — were also freed, but they were not part of any prisoner exchange deal.  

• Five Israelis had already been released in October itself.

• Of the rest, 23 Thai hostages and one Filipino were freed when the Thai government reached a separate deal with Hamas — in two batches in November and December 2023.  

According to the Hostages Families Forum, an organisation that represents most hostage families, there are still 109 hostages remaining in Hamas’s captivity. Following Tuesday’s announcement of the recovery of six bodies of hostages, the forum has renewed its call on the Benjamin Netanyahu government of Israel to conclude a hostage release deal with Hamas as a matter of urgency.

The forum said, “The immediate return of the remaining 109 hostages can only be achieved through a negotiated deal. The Israeli government, with the assistance of mediators, must do everything in its power to finalise the deal currently on the table.”

Amnesty International also estimates that the number of hostages in Hamas’s captivity is more than 100. Reports quoting Israeli officials say that at least one-third of the hostages are believed dead.

“Israel has a moral and ethical obligation to return all the murdered for dignified burial and to bring all living hostages home for rehabilitation,” read the Hostage Families Forum’s statement.

This is where the current negotiation that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken attempted during his ninth and latest visit to West Asia since October 7 is centred on. Described as a “bridging proposal”, the peace deal calls for a six-week truce, an exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners, and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from major population centres in Gaza.