For the families of the remaining Oct. 7 hostages in Gaza, President Donald Trump delivered an alarming update on Tuesday claiming that only 21 hostages are still living.
“I said, ‘How many people are left? How many are left?’ They said, ’59,’” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “I said, ‘Oh, wow. That’s more than I thought.’ They said, ‘Well, only 24 are living.’ But now it’s 21. That was a week ago. Now it’s 21 are living. And these are young people. These are young people don’t die. Old people die. Young people don’t die under these conditions.”
However, Trump’s assessment was immediately challenged by Israeli officials responsible for hostage negotiations.
“Currently, 59 hostages are being held by the Hamas terrorist organization. Twenty-four of them are listed as living hostages. Thirty-five of them are listed as deceased hostages, with their deaths having been officially confirmed,” IDF Brig. Gen. (res.) Gal Hirsch wrote on X after Trump’s disturbing revelation.
Hirsch also emphasized that the Captives and Missing Persons Unit “maintains continuous contact with all the hostages’ families” and remains available for updates through various channels.
Neither Trump nor White House officials provided sources or evidence for his claim that three more hostages had been killed, nor did he reveal any names. Caught between contradictory statements from Trump and Israeli officials, distraught families of the captives in Gaza issued a statement through the Hostage Forum demanding answers from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“The number of known living hostages, which was communicated to the families by official sources, is 24. We once again ask the Israeli government that if there is any new information that has been hidden from us, to transmit it to us immediately. The Forum once again calls on the Prime Minister to stop the war until the last hostage is returned. This is the most urgent and important national mission.”
During the same briefing, Trump also confirmed he would not be visiting Israel during his scheduled Middle East trip next week.
Source link
