Approximately 220 people are still estimated to be held hostage by Hamas. A handful have been released, including 85-year-old Yocheved Lifshitz – who the day after his release testifies to a couple of nightmare weeks.
– I was part of a hell I could never have imagined. They shot at our homes, beat people and kidnapped some, like me, she told a press conference on Tuesday.
The question of how Israel should handle the hostage situation also dominates the news flow in the country, where a possible ground invasion of Gaza is weighed against the situation of the kidnapped and possible military responses from other countries and organizations in the region.
Worst possible situation for negotiation
The professor, author and negotiation expert Lars-Johan Åge believes that the conditions for a negotiation are the worst imaginable at the moment.
– Hamas hardly has an existence after a negotiated solution because their election manifesto is based on destroying Israel – which for its part tries to talk to the hostage takers while bombing targets in Gaza, he says.
In addition, Åge highlights the problem that it is largely impossible to take care of more than 200 hostages – a situation that no hostage-taker wishes for logistical reasons and which probably arose by chance. For that reason, he believes that the releases of the last few days should be seen as a concession from the organization.
– They are probably scattered over a variety of different places in Gaza. It is not at all certain that there is any one person who has control over what happens to all 200, says Åge.
Hamas’ purpose for the hostage-taking
Hamas’ purpose for the kidnappings is based on three points, according to Åge. First of all, they want to gain attention for their cause, secondly, they want to carry out some kind of prisoner exchange, and thirdly, they want to undermine Israel’s incipient better relations with other Arab countries.
– With the fact that Israel’s response to the Hamas attack itself was violent, you can say that they succeeded in the latter, says Åge.
At the same time, TV4 Nyheternas’ Middle East correspondent testifies that it is impossible to find out the exact extent of the situation in Gaza. This is because international journalists are not allowed to enter the area.
– We have to rely on reports from people inside Gaza. They describe an extremely difficult situation where the electricity is running out and where aid organizations can barely get in, says Terese Cristiansson on the ground in Jerusalem.