The Israeli military on Sunday denied the claim by the armed wing of Hamas. (File)
A spokesman for Hamas’ armed wing said on Sunday that its fighters captured Israeli soldiers during fighting in Jabalia in northern Gaza on Saturday, although the Israeli military denied the claim.
The spokesman for Hamas’ armed wing did not say how many soldiers were kidnapped and provided no evidence for the claim.
“Our fighters lured a Zionist force into an ambush inside a tunnel… The fighters withdrew after leaving all members of the force dead, injured and captured,” said Abu Ubaida, spokesman for the Al Qassam Brigades, in a recorded message. broadcast on Al Jazeera on Sunday morning.
The Israeli military on Sunday denied the claim by the armed wing of Hamas.
“The IDF (Israel Defense Forces) clarifies that there is no incident in which a soldier was kidnapped,” the military said in a statement.
Hamas released a video that appeared to show a bloodied person being dragged along the floor in a tunnel and photos of military and rifle fatigue. Reuters was unable to independently verify the identity of the person shown in the video or their condition.
Abu Ubaida’s comments came hours after prospects for a resumption of mediated ceasefire talks in Gaza grew on Saturday.
An official with knowledge of the matter said a decision was made to resume talks next week after the head of the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad met with the head of the CIA and the prime minister of Qatar.
The source, who did not want to be identified by name or nationality, said it was decided that “next week negotiations will be opened based on new proposals led by the mediators, Egypt and Qatar and with active US involvement”.
A Hamas official later denied Israeli media reports that talks would resume in Cairo on Tuesday, telling Reuters: “There is no date.”
After more than seven months of war in Gaza, mediators have struggled to secure a breakthrough, with Israel seeking the release of hostages held by Hamas and Hamas seeking an end to the war and the release of Palestinian prisoners in Israel.
Almost 36,000 Palestinians were killed in Israel’s offensive, says the Gaza Health Ministry. Israel launched the operation in response to Hamas-led militants who attacked communities in southern Israel on October 7, killing around 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli records.
(Except the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
This story originally appeared on Ndtv.com read the full story
