Hamas military wing says hostage killed in Israeli attack on northern Gaza

Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Palestinian group Hamas, said on Saturday that an Israeli female hostage was killed in an attack by Israel's army on northern Gaza Strip.

"After re-establishing contact, which had been cut off for weeks, with fighters tasked with protecting enemy (Israeli) captives, it was revealed that one of the enemy's female captives was killed in an area subjected to Zionist aggression in northern Gaza,” Abu Obaida, the spokesperson for the armed group, said in a statement on Telegram.

Obaida said life of another female captive, who was with the killed hostage, remains at "imminent risk."

"The war criminal (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu, his government, and his military leaders bear full responsibility for the lives of their captives, as they persist in exacerbating their suffering and causing their deaths,” the spokesman added.

Al-Qassam published a photo of the deceased hostage with the caption: “A new victim of Netanyahu and (Chief of Staff Herzi) Halevi.”

Israel has killed more than 44,000 Palestinians in Gaza since the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas, which are believed to have claimed 1,200 lives and around 250 others were taken as hostages.

Tel Aviv holds at least 9,500 Palestinians in its prisons and 101 Israeli captives are still believed to be in Gaza. Hamas says dozens of the captives were killed in random Israeli airstrikes.

The families of hostages and the opposition accuse Netanyahu of refusing to end the war and withdraw from Gaza in fear of seeing his coalition government collapsing, as extremist ministers have threatened to withdraw.

Israel faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on Gaza.

Separately, the International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, accusing them of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.