Netanyahu Worries Over 'Horrific' Videos, Hamas Says Will Allow Aid For Hostages If... Outrage Over Al-Aqsa Visit

(MENAFN- Live Mint) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed worry over a "horrific" video released by Hamas last week, showing two emaciated Israeli captives. He also urged the Red Cross to give humanitarian assistance to the hostages during a conversation with the head of the Swiss-based ICRC's local delegation.

Gaza war: Here's what happened lately:

1. After Netanyahu's appeal, Hamas said on Sunday it was prepared to coordinate with the Red Cross to deliver aid to hostages it holds in Gaza, if Israel meets certain conditions.

2. Hamas said any coordination with the Red Cross is contingent upon Israel permanently opening humanitarian corridors and halting airstrikes during the distribution of aid.

3. On Saturday, Hamas released its second video in two days of Israeli hostage Evyatar David. In the video, David, skeletally thin, is shown digging a hole that, he says in the video, is for his own grave. The arm of the individual holding the camera, which can be seen in the frame, is a regular width.

4. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday he had asked the Red Cross to give humanitarian assistance to the hostages during a conversation with the head of the Swiss-based ICRC's local delegation.

5. In a video message posted on X, Netanyahu said,“Dear citizens of Israel, like you, I was horrified yesterday. I saw the horrific videos of our dear boys, Rom and Evyatar. I called their families, embraced them on my behalf and on behalf of my wife, and also on your behalf.”

Netanyahu said on X that Hamas "doesn't want a deal. It wants to break us through these horrific videos, through the false horror propaganda it spreads around the world."

6. Netanyahu reiterated, "I am filled with even stronger determination to free our kidnapped sons, to eliminate Hamas, and to ensure that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to the State of Israel."

7. According to Israeli officials, 50 hostages now remain in Gaza, only 20 of whom are believed to be alive. Hamas, thus far, has barred humanitarian organisations from having any kind of access to the hostages, and families have little or no details of their conditions, Reuters reported.

8. The UN Security Council will hold an emergency session on the hostages in Gaza, Israel's ambassador said Sunday, as outrage built over their fate in the war-torn enclave, where experts say a famine is unfolding.

9. The Hamas-run Gaza government media office said on Sunday that nearly 1,600 aid trucks had arrived since Israel eased restrictions late in July. However, witnesses and Hamas sources said many of those trucks have been looted by desperate displaced people and armed gangs.

10. Meanwhile, Israel's far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir visited the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem and prayed there, violating a decades-old arrangement covering one of the most sensitive sites in the Middle East.

Photos and videos of his visit show Ben-Gvir leading Jewish prayers at the compound, which is known by Jews as the Temple Mount, in occupied East Jerusalem. Praying at the site breaks a long-time arrangement that allows Jews to visit the site but not pray, the BBC reported.

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