Gantz: Forgoing a hostage deal for ‘political reasons’ cost the lives of 30 hostages

1 December 2024, 5:25 pm

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National Unity chair Benny Gantz attends an Israel Hayom security conference in Jerusalem, December 1, 2024. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

National Unity chair Benny Gantz estimates that around 30 hostages who have died or been killed in Gaza since they were abducted on October 7 last year would still be alive today had the government not chosen to forgo a hostage deal for “political reasons.”

Speaking at the Israel Hayom conference, Gantz argues that if Israel was able to come to an agreement with Hezbollah in Lebanon, it should have also been able to make a deal with Hamas, which he says is “the most dismantled” of Israel’s enemies.

“The return of the hostages is at the core of the values of the State of Israel,” he adds. “It is the most important thing.”