Half of all buildings in northern Gaza are damaged or destroyed, according to satellite analysis estimates.
Hamas freed another group of eight Israeli hostages on Thursday, including dual nationals from Mexico, Russia and Uruguay.
Hours later, the Israeli Prison Service announced the release of 30 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
It was the seventh consecutive day of releases of Israeli hostages from Gaza and Palestinians from Israeli prisons under the truce, which had been renewed early Thursday morning minutes before it was set to expire. That extension was set to last just 24 hours, and diplomats expressed some pessimism about the prospects for another extension to be agreed upon before the current arrangement expires on Friday.
Here’s what we know about the Israeli hostages released on Thursday.
Mia Schem, 21
Image
Mia Schem.Credit...Hostages and Missing Families Forum, via Reuters
Mia Schem, 21, a dual Israeli-French citizen, was abducted from the site of the Tribe of Nova music festival where at least 260 people were killed in the Hamas-led assault on Israel on Oct. 7.
She was shown in a video released by Hamas on Oct. 16, the first images released by the group of any of the roughly 240 hostages. In the video, she said that she had undergone surgery on her arm after being abducted, though the reason was unclear. (According to an analysis by The New York Times, metadata contained within the video file indicates that some of the footage was filmed at least six days before it was released.)
Amit Soussana, 40
Image
Amit SoussanaCredit...Hostages and Missing Families Forum, via Reuters
Amit Soussana, 40, a lawyer, was kidnapped from Kibbutz Kfar Aza a few miles east of Gaza. At the time, she had been at home with a fever, according to The Times of Israel. Her family told Israeli news organizations that during the Oct. 7 assault, Ms. Soussana hid in a safe room in her house, but the attackers were still able to reach her.
She and her family are left-leaning politically and had called for peaceful coexistence with Palestinians. Her sister, Shira Soussana, said that the kidnapping has shaken the family’s sense of security. “We don’t have a belief anymore in people, it’s so evil,” she said, adding, “on both sides.”
Ilana Gritzewsky Kimchi, 30
Image
Ilana Gritzewsky KimchiCredit...Hostages and Missing Families Forum, via Associated Press
Ilana Gritzewsky Kimchi, 30, is an immigrant from Mexico, according to the Hostages and Missing Persons Families Forum. Ms. Gritzewsky Kimchi was kidnapped on Oct. 7 from Kibbutz Nir Oz, where scores of residents were murdered by Hamas.
Nili Margalit, 41
Image
Nili MargalitCredit...Hostages and Missing Families Forum, via Reuters
Nili Margalit, 41, was kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz. On the morning of the attack, she texted friends to say that she was locked in a safe room with her dog and that for hours she had been hearing attackers walking around outside, according to The Times of Israel.
Ms. Margalit works as a nurse in southern Israel at the Soroka Medical Center, the Rambam Health Care Campus said on Facebook. Another former hostage, Yocheved Lifshitz, 85, told The Times of Israel that she had seen Ms. Margalit caring for other people while they were being held captive.
Sapir Cohen, 29
Image
Sapir CohenCredit...Hostages and Missing Families Forum, via Associated Press
Sapir Cohen, 29, was taken hostage along with her boyfriend, Sasha Trupanob, 28, from Kibbutz Nahal Oz, where they were visiting his family.
Mr. Trupanob’s mother, Yelena Trupanob, and grandmother, Irena Tati, both Russian émigrés, were also taken hostage but were released on Wednesday.
Mr. Trupanob is believed to remain in Gaza.
Aisha Ziyadne, 17; Bilal Ziyadne, 18
Image
Aisha Ziyadne, left, and Bilal ZiyadneCredit...via Reuters
Aisha Ziyadne, 17, and her brother Bilal Ziyadne, 18, are Bedouin Muslim citizens of Israel. They were kidnapped along with their father, Yousef, and brother, Hamza, from Kibbutz Holit near the border with Gaza, Israeli officials said. The Ziyadne family — the name is sometimes transliterated as Alziadna — had been calling on the Israeli government to do more to free them.
Shani Goren, 29
Image
Shani GorenCredit...Hostages and Missing Families Forum, via Associated Press
Shani Goren, 29, a teacher, was abducted from the safe room in her home at Kibbutz Nir Oz on the morning of Oct. 7, according to Israeli news outlets.
In captivity, she looked after a 12-year-old boy, Eitan Yahami, who had been taken hostage from the same kibbutz, The Jerusalem Post reported. Eitan was released on Tuesday.
Ms. Goren was born in Israel and holds Uruguayan citizenship through her grandparents, who settled in Israel in 1953.
The Synagogue Church of all Nations (SCOAN) has countered the BBC documentary on the late Temitope Babatunde Joshua, known as TB Joshua, founder of SCOAN. SCOAN described the documentary against TB Joshua as unfounded, and that the characters interviewed in the report were unknown to the church. The church, in a statement signed by its Public Affairs Director, Mr Dare Adejumo, said the statement was aimed at disabusing public minds from the report. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the BBC released a highly controversial and damning documentary on the late TB Joshua on Monday, accusing him of various crimes, including rape, against some members. SCOAN said, “BBC World Services investigative unit, code-named Africa Eye, came out this week with weird and strange episodes of atrocities against the late founder of SCOAN.” It said that to investigate and publish or broadcast reports was a central kernel of journalism, but to do so outside the ethics and fundamental principles
The NBA has suspended former San Antonio Spurs guard Joshua Primo for four games ... after it says it found he exposed his private parts to multiple women. The league announced the ban on Friday morning ... saying an investigation into the free agent revealed he had "engaged in inappropriate and offensive behavior." NBA officials called his actions "conduct detrimental to the league." They did, however, note that they "did not find evidence that he engaged in any sexual or other misconduct apart from these brief exposures." "Primo maintains that his conduct was not intentional," the league said. Dr. Hillary Cauthen , Primo's former therapist, was the first to bring the allegations against Primo to light after she claimed last fall that he exposed himself to her on nine separate occasions. Dr. Cauthen's attorney, Tony Buzbee , alleged the Spurs were aware of Primo's actions, but didn't take action. Cauthen went on to file
Sky Sports were left red-faced after an on-screen graphic mistakenly introduced Chelsea defender Axel Disasi as Noni Madueke on Tuesday night. The pair were both the scoresheet as the Blues thrashed Middlesbrough 6-1 at Stamford Bridge in the second leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final to boo their place at Wembley. But when Disasi spoke to Sky Sports after the game, an on-screen graphic introduced him as Madueke instead. Madueke is four years younger than his Chelsea teammate, plays in a different role and is English, while Disasi is French. Viewers immediately spotted the mistake and took to social media to flag up the glaring error. Sky Sports with a huge mistake as that is Axel Disasi, not Noni Madueke,' another added, while a third described the gaffe as a 'howler'. A fourth commented: 'Sky sports calling Disasi Madueke. They’ve done it again.' Disasi scored Chelsea's third goal in the 6-1 rout, converting Raheem Sterling's cross at the far post after th
Comments
Post a Comment