Hamas releases two elderly Israeli hostages
The armed wing of the Palestinian Hamas militant group said on Monday it had released two Israeli women on health grounds. "We decided to release them for humanitarian and poor health grounds," Abu Ubaida, spokesman for the armed wing, said on Telegram. A source said they were elderly Israelis, identified by Israeli media as Nurit Cooper and Yocheved Lifshitz. They were freed following the release of an American woman and her daughter on Friday. All four were among more than 200 people Hamas gunmen took hostage in an October 7 cross-border assault in which they killed 1,400 people. Israel's Channel 12 said on Monday that the third and fourth hostages had been released and that families had been informed. Egypt's Extra News TV showed footage of two captives being transferred to ambulances at Rafah crossing from Gaza to Egypt. There was no immediate comment from Israeli officials. Israel pounded hundreds of targets in Gaza from the air on Monday as its soldiers fought Hamas militants during raids into the besieged Palestinian strip where deaths are soaring and civilians are trapped in harrowing conditions. Gaza's health ministry said 436 people had been killed in bombardments over the last 24 hours, most in the south of the narrow, densely populated territory, next to which Israeli troops and tanks have massed for a possible ground invasion. The Israeli military said it had struck more than 320 targets in Gaza over 24 hours, including a tunnel housing Hamas fighters, dozens of command and lookout posts, and mortar and anti-tank missile launcher positions. In public, the United States has stressed Israel's right to defend itself but two sources familiar with the matter said the White House, Pentagon and State Department have stepped up private appeals for caution in conversations with the Israelis. Asked about the possibility of a ceasefire, US President Joe Biden said: "We should have those hostages released and then we can talk." (Reuters)