Red Cross concerned ‘vulnerable people’ are being held hostage by Hamas

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said Tuesday it is concerned about the “vulnerable people” being held hostage by Hamas.

“We are deeply concerned that children, the elderly, people with disabilities, and other vulnerable people are among those held,” said Mirjana Spoljaric Egger, the organization’s president, in a statement.

The group said it has been advocating on behalf of the hostages directly with Hamas and “actors who may have influence on the parties.”

Spoljaric said she will be meeting with Israel’s foreign minister and health minister and families of the hostages at the Red Cross’s headquarters in Geneva.

“Families of hostages are living through an incredibly heart-wrenching time, and I want to underscore how hard we are advocating on behalf of their loved ones,” Spoljaric’s statement said. “This is a key priority for me, and I know the enormous pain the families are enduring.”

More than 200 hostages were kidnapped by Hamas as part of its Oct. 7 attack on Israel when members of the militant group killed as many as 1,400 people. That prompted an aggressive air bombing counteroffensive from Israel in Gaza that has killed more than 10,000, according to the health ministry for the territory run by Hamas.

Among the hostages taken by Hamas are children who are just a few months old, young women and men, the elderly and Holocaust survivors.

Two elderly women were recovered from captivity in the Gaza Strip in late October and handed over to the ICRC. The group previously released two hostages, a dual American-Israeli mother and her 18-year-old daughter.

The Biden administration has said at least 10 American citizens are unaccounted for and has not confirmed they are all being held by Hamas.

The ICRC said it continues to request information about the hostages and their health conditions and is “working to clarify the fate of those unaccounted for.”

The ICRC, a “neutral, impartial and independent organization” said it is working to aid victims on all sides of the ongoing conflict. The organization urged the parties to uphold international humanitarian law and to spare civilians from the “conduct of military operations.”

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