In a new development, Hamas has offered to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid to the hostages it holds in Gaza.
However, the offer is dependent on Israel’s agreement to a permanent halt to airstrikes and the opening of permanent aid corridors for the Palestinian people.
This conditional offer follows the strong condemnation by the family of Israeli hostage Evyatar David, who slammed a recent Hamas video showing him in a weakened state as a “vile hunger campaign.”
David, a 24-year-old was captured on October 7, 2023, along with Gal Gilboa-Dalal and 44 festival-goers seized during the Nova music festival attack, appeared noticeably thin and frail in a concrete tunnel.
His family’s public statement expressed outrage, demanding that Hamas provide immediate food and medical care. They also called on the Israeli government, the U.S. president, and the wider international community to intervene to secure his safe return.
In their statement, the David family demanded that the aid that is now getting into Gaza thanks to renewed UN convoys and foreign airdrops must also reach their son.
“We call upon the government of Israel, the people of Israel, nations of the world and the president of the United States to do everything possible to save Evyatar from death and ensure, by any means necessary, that he urgently receives food and medical care,” they said.
The timing of the video has highlighted the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where Israeli aid restrictions have been blamed for severe food shortages.
The situation underscores the immense challenges in the region, with the welfare of both the hostages and the broader Palestinian population caught in the conflict.
REUTERS
