Israel to transfer vital medications to Gaza hostages in coming days

The statement added that the medications will be delivered to the hostages in the next few days.

Channel 12 reported that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) will facilitate the transfer.

It is believed that 132 hostages abducted by Hamas on October 7 remain in Gaza — not all of them alive — after 105 civilians were released from Hamas captivity during a weeklong truce in late November.

They have had no access to the ICRC since being abducted during Hamas’s murderous onslaught across southern Israel when terrorists killed 1,200 and took 240 others captive — mostly civilians. Critics have blasted the Red Cross for failing to visit them in captivity or even ensure that much-needed medicines reach those being held.

An Israeli official told The Times of Israel that the list of medications for the hostages will include ones deemed as “life-saving” by their doctors and are believed to include medicine for those with chronic illnesses, heart disease, high blood pressure and asthma.

According to the official, the negotiations were complex as Hamas is wary that the transfer of medications to the hostages will lead to Israel discovering where exactly they are being held.

The official said that Israel has been pushing from the get-go for medications to be transferred to Hamas, which has until this week refused to cooperate.

The official said that as part of the agreement, Israel had agreed to expand the entry of medications for Palestinians as part of the humanitarian aid entering Gaza.

The Qatar-led deal with the Hamas terror group was led by Mossad spy agency chief David Barnea and approved by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to the PMO statement.

The announcement came a day after The New York Times revealed the existence of advanced negotiations brokered by Qatar between Israel and Hamas aimed at transferring medications to the many hostages in need of them.

Channel 12 said that the agreement to transfer medications to the Gaza hostages should not be interpreted as a move toward a possible new hostage release deal.