Israel takes 1,000+ hostages from Gaza – Israeli military chief

Israel has taken more than 1,000 people as hostages during its ground invasion in Gaza, Israel’s military chief said on Sunday.

Chief of the General Staff Major-General Herzi Halevi said that when combatants “lay down their arms and raise their hands, we arrest them, we don’t shoot them”

“We get a lot of intelligence from the captives we have, we already have over a thousand,” he said in a video distributed by the military.

The Palestinians taken captives; however, have been identified as civilians.

According to eyewitnesses, some of the hostages work in the media, while others are medical staff.

Israeli occupation forces also forced the civilians they took in captivity to strip to their underwears in one of the coldest months of the year.