Hamas announces first death of Israeli hostage due to "medicine and food shortages"

GAZA, March 23 (Xinhua) -- The Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), announced on Saturday the death of the first Israeli hostage due to "shortages of medicine and food."

In a statement, the brigades identified the victim as 34-year-old Israeli man Yigev Bukhatab, stating that hostages in Gaza face similar hardships experienced by Palestinians living in the coastal enclave.

The brigades also published a short video clip showing the body of Bukhatab, while there has been no immediate comment from Israel on the report.

Hamas kidnapped more than 250 people from Israel during a surprise attack on the southern part of the country on Oct. 7, 2023, which also killed about 1,200 people, according to figures published by Israeli authorities. In response, Israel launched a large-scale retaliatory attack, killing more than 32,000 in Gaza as of Saturday, according to Hamas-run Health Ministry.

After the outbreak of the conflict, Israel also imposed a blockade on the coastal enclave, home to about 2.35 million people, exacerbating severe shortages of essentials such as food, water, medicine, and electricity for local residents.