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100 days of captivity for Israeli hostages held in Gaza

A man holds a sign calling for the release of the hostages taken by Hamas militants into the Gaza Strip during a demonstration in Tel Aviv, Israel, Jan. 13, 2024.   -  
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Leo Correa/Copyright 2023 The AP. All rights reserved.

Israel

Sunday marked the 100th day in the war between Israel and Hamas.

The Palestinian group aired, late Sunday (Jan. 14), an undated video showing three Israeli hostages asking their government to be brought back home.

The clip ended with the chyron “Tomorrow, we will inform you of their fate.”

Sunday afternoon, Israel's PM promised to rescue all hostages:

"We don't give up on anyone. We are doing everything to get everyone back home. I emphasize everyone, without exception. These efforts continue all the time, even in these moments."

On Saturday (Jan. 13), Israel said it brokered a deal to deliver medicines to the approximately 130 captives.

However, the relentless bombing of Gaza continues to worry their relatives in Israel.

They kicked off a 24-hour rally in Tel Aviv on Saturday night.

Hamas and other Gaza militants captured some 250 people during its deadly Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel, while killing some 1,200 other people, most of them civilians.

More than 100 hostages were released during a temporary truce in November.

There has been little visible progress toward a new deal to release hostages. Their families are using the 100-day mark for a new appeal to the government to prioritize bringing home the abductees. Some have said the government has not done enough.

Near the rally in support of the hostages, anti-government demonstrators calling for new elections to be held blocked a major Tel Aviv highway, clashing with police who made arrests and tried to push the crowd back. Other protesters advanced toward Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's private residence in the coastal town of Caesarea, calling for his dismissal from office.

On the northern front, in Lebanon, the leader of Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah claimed in televised speech that Israel’s Gaza campaign was “mired in failure” .

Israel has been trading fire almost daily with the Lebanese group, a Hamas ally. However, tension rose further in the aftermath of an Israeli airstrike which killed an elite Hezbollah commander on January 8th.

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