The President of the United States, Joe Biden has declared that Americans are likely being held hostage by Palestinian militant group Hamas after its surprise attack on Israel, and that at least 11 US citizens were killed in the assault.
In its weekend assault on southern Israel from Gaza, Hamas took roughly 150 hostages; a senior US defence source described the incident as involving ‘ISIS-level savagery.’
Africa Today News, New York reports that Hamas threatened on Monday to kill the hostages if retaliatory Israeli air strikes continue ‘targeting’ Gaza residents without warning.
The threat came after Israel imposed a total siege on the Gaza Strip, cutting off the water supply, which sparked UN fears of an increasingly dire humanitarian situation.
Biden said that Washington, which has moved an aircraft carrier closer to Israel in a show of support, was working with its key ally on efforts to recover the hostages after the “heart-wrenching” attacks.
‘Sadly, we now know that at least 11 American citizens were among those killed — many of whom made a second home in Israel,’ Biden said in a statement after meeting his national security team at the White House.
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‘While we are still working to confirm, we believe it is likely that American citizens may be among those being held by Hamas,’ he added.
‘I have directed my team to work with their Israeli counterparts on every aspect of the hostage crisis, including sharing intelligence and deploying experts from across the United States government to consult with and advise Israeli counterparts on hostage recovery efforts.’
Biden added that the safety of American citizens at home or abroad was his ‘top priority as president’.
Reeling from the Palestinian Islamist group’s unprecedented ground, air and sea attacks, Israel has counted 800 dead and launched a withering barrage of strikes on Gaza that have raised the death toll there to 687.
The United States sent its largest aircraft carrier and five other warships near Israel in a show of support on Sunday, while boosting fighter aircraft squadrons in the region.
Lebanese militant group Hezbollah should not make the “wrong decision” of opening a second front against Israel as it battles Hamas, the defense official said.