Iran sought to pressure Israel to end its revenge airstrikes on Gaza by stating Monday that Hamas terrorists, long sponsored by Tehran, would be willing to release the 199 hostages now known to have been taken during the massacre of more than 1,400 people.
Iranian Foreign Minister Nasser Kanaani said Hamas is “ready” to release the hostages, but doing so would be “impossible” under Israeli airstrikes in the region.
He considered that the terrorist group “declared that it is willing to take the necessary measures to release citizens and civilians held by the resistance groups, but its point is that such measures require preparations that are impossible under the Zionists’ daily bombings against various parties. from Gaza. ”Kanaani said.
Despite this, Hamas has yet to publicly make such an offer.
However, the terrorist group spoke out on Monday to maintain that its unprecedented Oct. 7 attack was an individual effort not prompted by Iran, despite widespread belief among Israeli and Western officials.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said Hamas was considering releasing the 199 hostages if Israel stopped its airstrikes. AP
The war in Gaza is “a Palestinian battle and the decision to enter it was a Palestinian decision” made by Hamas and its military wing, the Izz ad-Din al Qassam Brigades, “along with Palestinian resistance factions,” according to Hamas spokesman. representative in Lebanon, Ahmed Abdul-Hadi.
Although no government around the world has offered direct evidence to support the widespread belief that Iran orchestrated the attack, Tehran has long sponsored Hamas, including training, financing and supplying weapons.
Abdul-Hadi said Hamas allies Iran and Hezbollah will not allow Israel to “crush Gaza” or launch a “comprehensive ground attack,” but that the groups have deliberately left ambiguity about when and how they would respond. “This depends on the evolution of the situation at that time.”
In the event of a “ground attack, regardless of its level,” or if “more and more massacres continue to be committed” in Gaza and Hamas is depleting its resources, he said, there will be “surprises foretold.”
Israel stood firm on Monday, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office declaring: “There is no ceasefire.”
It came as the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed on Monday that at least 199 hostages are known to be held in Gaza, a much larger number than previously believed.
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Military spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said the families have been notified. He did not say how many of the captives were foreigners or who was holding them, although most are believed to be held by Hamas, which rules Gaza.
Terrorists have previously threatened to release images of hostages being executed in revenge for Israeli counterattacks.
Israel has said it will soon begin a ground offensive in Gaza. AFP via Getty Images
Iran’s government has backed Hamas, and Iranian security officials are believed to have helped the terrorist group plan its October 7 sneak attack on Israel, according to reports.
Iran has warned that it could also enter the war if Israel launches a long-awaited ground offensive in the Gaza Strip in the coming days.
The worst attack on Israel in 50 years: how we got here
2005: Israel unilaterally withdraws from the Gaza Strip more than three decades after seizing the territory from Egypt in the Six-Day War.
2006: The terrorist group Hamas wins the Palestinian legislative elections.
2007: Hamas takes control of Gaza in a civil war.
2008: Israel launches a military offensive against Gaza after Palestinian terrorists fire rockets at the city of Sderot.
2023: Hamas launches largest attack on Israel in 50 years.
More than 1,400 Israelis have been killed, more than 3,500 wounded and at least 100 taken hostage, with the death toll expected to rise after Hamas terrorists fired thousands of rockets and sent dozens of militants into Israeli cities. .
Hamas terrorists were seen taking women hostage and parading them down the street in gruesome videos.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced “We are at war” and promised that Hamas would pay “a price it has never known.”
Gaza health officials report that at least 2,750 Palestinians have been killed and more than 9,700 injured.
The Israeli military said again on Saturday that it is “preparing to implement a wide range of offensive operational plans that include, among other things, an integrated and coordinated attack from the air, sea and land.”
Photos of people reported to have been kidnapped or killed by Hamas are taped to a fence at the Israeli embassy during a rally in support of Israel in Dublin, Ireland, Sunday, Oct. 15, 2023.AP Foreign Minister of Iran, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, and Hamas’ top leader, Ismail Haniyeh.via REUTERS
The Lebanon-based terrorist organization Hezbollah has already waded into the conflict by launching missiles at Israel, a move it insists is a “warning” rather than an entry into the war.
Follow The Post’s live blog for the latest on Hamas’ attack on Israel.
“We hear from the resistance that they have no problem continuing to resist,” Kanaani said, referring to Hamas. “They said that the resistance has the military capacity to continue resisting in the countryside for a long time.”
More than 2,600 people in Gaza have been killed as Israel bombards the region with missiles, the Palestinian Health Ministry said. Authorities in Israel say the ongoing conflict has killed at least 1,400 people.
With postal cables
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Source: vtt.edu.vn