First death of Israeli hostage due to "medicine and food shortages", Hamas confirms

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The brigades identified the victim as 34-year-old Israeli man Yigev Bukhatab.

By SINAR DAILY REPORTER

24 Mar 2024 05:32am

epa11239268 Internally displaced Palestinians gather to collect food donated by a charitable group before breaking the fast during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, 23 March 2024. Since 07 October 2023, up to 1.9 million people, or more than 85 percent of the population, have been displaced throughout the Gaza Strip, some more than once, according to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), which added that most civilians in Gaza are in 'desperate need of humanitarian assistance and protection'. EPA/HAITHAM IMAD

GAZA - The Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), announced on Saturday the death of the first Israeli hostage due to "shortages of medicine and food."

The brigades identified the victim as 34-year-old Israeli man Yigev Bukhatab, in a statement, saying that hostages in Gaza face similar hardships experienced by Palestinians living in the coastal enclave.

The brigades also published a short video clip showing the body of Bukhatab, while there has been no immediate comment from Israel on the report.

Hamas held more than 250 people from Israel hostage during a surprise offensive on the southern part of the country on Oct 7 last year and saw about 1,200 people dead according to figures published by Israeli authorities.

In response, Israel launched a large-scale retaliatory attack, killing more than 32,000 in Gaza as of Saturday, according to the Palestine Health Ministry.

Israel went on to impose a total blockade on the coastal enclave, home to about 2.35 million people, exacerbating severe shortages of essentials such as food, water, medicine, and electricity for local residents.