Israel has since the start of its military offensive to capture Gaza City lost all opportunities to get its hostages out of Gaza. This is stated by Hamas in a letter written in Hebrew and addressed to the Israeli military, reports CNN.
"Your prisoners are placed around Gaza City and we will not care about their lives as long as Netanyahu (Israel's Prime Minister) has decided to kill them," the letter states.
In a later statement directed at Israel, Hamas also states that they are preparing for battle and that "Gaza will become a graveyard for your soldiers).
At the same time, the pressure on the Israeli government is increasing with weekly protests in Tel Aviv to put an end to the war and to reach a ceasefire.
Hostages are always on our minds. We will do everything in our power to avoid harming them, said the spokesperson for Israel's military and Brigadier General Effie Defrin in an attempt to calm the hostages' relatives during a press conference on Thursday.
48 people are still being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza, of which 20 are believed to be alive.
