Netanyahu offers millions for release of hostages in Gaza

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday offered a reward of $5 million for each hostage that is released from Gaza.

He also promised that anyone who helps Israel with freeing the hostages will get help leaving the besieged Palestinian territory.

“To those who want to leave this entanglement I say: Whoever brings us a hostage, will find a safe way out for himself and his family. We will also give $5 million for every hostage,” Netanyahu said during a brief visit to the Palestinian territory, according to his office.

“The choice is yours but the result will be the same: We will bring them all back.”

A previous offer of this nature was dismissed by Hamas, an Islamist militant group backed by Iran, as a farce. The group said the remaining hostages would only be released as part of an agreement to end the war, lift the blockade and reconstruct the strip.

Of the approximately 250 people abducted from Israel during the Hamas massacres on October 7 2023, around 100 are still being held in the Gaza Strip although many of them may no longer be alive. Some relatives of the hostages accuse Netanyahu of preventing an agreement for the release in order to keep the war going and maintain his hold on power.

Netanyahu also said that under no circumstances would Hamas rule the Gaza Strip in the future.

The Israeli prime minister visited Gaza’s Netzarim Corridor, which separates northern Gaza from the south and is a key supply route for Israeli forces.

Israeli army kills three gunmen near Jenin

The Israeli army killed three gunmen during a raid in the northern West Bank, it confirmed on Tuesday.

Palestinian and Israeli media reported that Israeli forces fired at a house in a village near the city of Jenin, where wanted Palestinians were said to be hiding, in order to drive them out of the building.

The Health Ministry in Ramallah said the three men who were killed were aged between 24 and 32 years old. It was initially unclear whether they were members of a militant group.

The Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) later said the three men were members of the organization.

Palestinian media reported that the Israeli army had been operating in the city of Jenin itself since Tuesday morning. The Palestinian news agency WAFA reported violent clashes between Palestinians and Israeli forces in the city, which is considered a stronghold of militant Palestinians.

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