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'Military pressure kills hostages': Former captives to Netanyahu

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Israeli media
21 Mar 2025 22:30

Former Israeli captives in Gaza and 250 relatives of captives held in the Palestinian enclave warn that "Israel's" military pressure is putting the lives of captives at risk.

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People take part in a protest in Tel Aviv, Saturday, March 8, 2025, demanding the immediate release of captives held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip (AP)

Forty former Israeli captives in Gaza and 250 relatives of captives held in the Palestinian enclave have signed a letter urging Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to halt its renewed aggression and resume negotiations with Hamas to secure the release of the remaining 59 captives.

"Stop the fighting. Return to the negotiating table and fully complete an agreement that will return all of the hostages, even at the cost of ending the war," the letter read, warning that "Israel's" military pressure is endangering the captives.

“Military pressure kills hostages and disappears bodies. This is not a slogan, this is reality," it emphasized, recalling that 41 captives were killed in Gaza.

"They could have returned to embrace and rehabilitate, and they will not return."

The former captives and families accused the Israeli occupation government of "choosing an endless war over rescuing and returning hostages, thereby sacrificing them to their deaths. This policy is criminal."

"You have no mandate to sacrifice 59 hostages,” they stressed, directly addressing the government.

The letter cautioned that "returning to fighting will cost additional hostages their lives and increase the risk of additional Ron Arads,” referring to the Israeli airman captured in Syria in 1986, whose fate remains unknown.

“We must stop the fighting and immediately return to the negotiating table to reach a comprehensive agreement for the hostages’ return: All of the hostages in exchange for ending the war and finding a solution for the day after. If you do not do this, the blood of the next hostage and the fate of all the hostages will be on your hands,” the letter added.

Netanyahu ordered the resumption of aggression against Gaza overnight Monday-Tuesday, declaring that further negotiations would take place “under fire” after Hamas rejected proposals to extend the first phase of the ceasefire.

The Palestinian group has insisted on adhering to the agreement Netanyahu signed in January, which stipulated that talks on phase two would begin in early February—talks that "Israel" largely refused to initiate.

Phase two outlines the release of all remaining living captives in exchange for a permanent end to the war and a complete withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces from Gaza.

But Netanyahu has maintained that "Israel" will not withdraw until Hamas’ military and governing infrastructure is dismantled.