The relatives of the surviving hostages captured during the attack on Israel on October 7 say they are desperate for information about their loved ones as the Israel-Hamas battle rages. Omer Wenkert, 22, was abducted by Hamas militants during the Supernova Sukkot Gathering, also known as Nova festival. His father, Shai Wenkert, spoke with VOA’s Esther Githui-Ewart about his family’s appeals for Omer’s return and their concerns for Omer, who suffers from colitis, a chronic digestive disease.
Israel says it is trying to minimize civilian losses while it continues its military offensive in Gaza, but Hamas and Israel are not yet willing to return to the negotiation table to discuss a cease-fire.
Recently, Hamas released a group of hostages that included an Israeli Argentine mother and her two young daughters. As their family celebrates their safe return, they anxious about their father, who is still being held captive.
The worst memories of the 1982 massacres in Sabra and Shatila, Lebanon, are being evoked by the war between Hamas and Israel. Nicole Di Ilio has this report from the Shatila refugee camp in Beirut.
On Friday, Hamas released 24 hostages in total, including 13 Israeli nationals, as part of the first round of a coordinated swap between Israel and Hamas. VOA’s Esther Githui-Ewart spoke to reporter Ricki Rosen in Tel Aviv for more on the status of care they are expected to receive from the Israeli government now that they are freed.
A Gaza-based journalist told VOA of his “overwhelming experience” covering the Israeli-Hamas war on the besieged territory when the Palestinian militant group Hamas attacked on October 7. Living in the southern part of Gaza,Fuad Abu Khamash says he is embedded with an emergency team covering the war within an ambulance.
As per a new report, there might be a deal between Israel and Hamas to free dozens of hostages held in Palestinian territory. Such a deal would bring much-needed aid across the border and at least a temporary pause to the bloodshed in Gaza. Such an agreement, according to American and Israeli sources, is not yet finalized.
The division between Muslims and Jews in Israeli society has deepned as a result of the October 7 Hamas attack and the military operation that followed. However, there are families that are determined that education is the first step towards learning Arabs and Jews how to live together.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has reported an increase in Jewish settler attacks against Palestinians since the war started between Israel and Hamas. In the southern part of the West Bank, over a thousand people have been displaced, over a dozen villages have been destroyed, and farmers have been evicted from their land.
Families of the nearly 240 hostages that Hamas is believed to be holding in Gaza have begun a five-day march from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. They say that they want the government to take more action to secure their loved ones’ freedom. From Tel Aviv, Linda Gradstein has this report.VOA footage by Ricki Rosen. VOA …
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