JERUSALEM: Greater than 50 freed Israeli hostages urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to totally implement the Gaza ceasefire deal and safe the discharge of these nonetheless held within the Palestinian territory.
“We who’ve skilled the inferno know {that a} return to warfare is life-threatening for these nonetheless left behind,” a gaggle of 56 freed hostages mentioned in a letter posted on the social media platform Instagram on Friday night (Mar 7).
“Implement the settlement in full, in a single single manoeuvre.”
Amongst these to signal the letter was Yarden Bibas, whose spouse and two younger sons died whereas held captive in Gaza.
Their plea got here as Hamas launched a video exhibiting Israeli hostage Matan Angrest alive, footage that his household mentioned had left them “shaken”.
Within the footage, Angrest, who turned 22 in November, additionally calls on the Israeli authorities to implement the second part of the Gaza ceasefire deal.
The primary part of the Gaza ceasefire ended on Mar 1 after six weeks of relative calm that included exchanges of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners, although hostilities haven’t resumed.
Whereas Israel has mentioned it desires to increase the primary part till mid-April, Hamas has insisted on a transition to the second part, which ought to result in a everlasting finish to the warfare.
Of the 251 hostages taken by Palestinian militants through the 2023 assault on Israel, 58 stay in Gaza, together with 34 the Israeli army has mentioned are useless.
