After Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he wanted the international organization to step in, Hamas has stated that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) could provide aid to Israeli prisoners in Gaza.
Palestinian organizations released videos last week showing two abused Israeli prisoners being held in Gaza, where about 2 million Palestinians are struggling to survive the Israeli-induced starvation crisis.
Netanyahu claimed on Sunday that he had spoken with the ICRC delegation’s leader in Israel and asked for “immediate involvement” in providing food and medical care to the prisoners still imprisoned in Gaza.
Netanyahu claimed in a post on X that he had told Larson that Hamas was spreading a “lie of starvation” in the enclave, but that “systematic starvation is being carried out against our hostages” in Hebrew.
Later on Sunday, a Hamas armed wing spokesman said in a statement that Israeli prisoners in Gaza “eat what our fighters and all our people eat.”
According to the spokesman, known as Abu Obeida, “They will not receive any special privileges amid the crime of starvation and siege.”
He continued, noting that the organization is “ready to respond to any request from the Red Cross to deliver food and medicine to enemy prisoners.”
“Humanitarian corridors must be opened in a normal and permanent manner for the passage of food and medicine to all our people in all areas of the Gaza Strip,” according to Abu Obeida.
He further stated that Israeli attacks of all kinds must end when prisoners’ packages are received.
The ICRC reiterated its request to be given “granted access to the hostages” in a statement released on Sunday that it was “appalled by the harrowing videos” of the captives held in Gaza.
The ICRC stated in the statement shared on X that “these videos are stark proof of the life-threatening conditions in which the hostages are being held.
The ICRC continued, “We know the conditions in which their loved ones are held in are horrifying and heartbroken,” adding the ICRC.
The ICRC states on its website that “all parties involved must co-operate to secure access.” Additionally, the ICRC states on its website that it has not been able to visit any Palestinian detainees detained by Israeli authorities since October 7, 2023.
The ICRC said in a separate statement on Sunday that it was “appalled” that a staff member of the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) had died in a “clearly marked Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) building in Khan Younis, southern Gaza.
The ICRC statement did not mention who was at fault, despite the PRCS’ earlier assertion that the attack was carried out by Israeli forces.
One million girls and women are starving.
Meanwhile, the families of Israeli prisoners imprisoned in Gaza on Sunday claimed that Netanyahu’s continued stance that a “military resolution” was the only option was “a direct danger to our sons’ lives, who live in the hell of tunnels and are threatened by starvation and immediate death.”
The families have claimed in a statement that an agreement is futile because the public has been sold the idea that military pressure will bring back the hostages for 22 months.
In Gaza, there are still about 50 captives. More than half of the population is thought to still be alive.
The Government Media Office in Gaza reported that 22, 000 aid trucks are waiting outside the Strip to deliver desperately needed food to Palestinians there on Saturday, according to the government media office there.
Additionally, 1 million women and girls in Gaza are currently starving, according to a warning from the UN office in Geneva on Sunday.
The UN stated in a post on X that “one million.” In Gaza, that is how many women and girls are battling hunger. This horrific circumstance must end.
We continue to demand the immediate release of all hostages, a ceasefire, and the delivery of lifesaving aid to all women and girls.
Source: Aljazeera
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