PIJ: Israeli hostages attempt suicide amid government neglect

Shafaq News/ On Wednesday, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement (PIJ) announced that some Israeli hostages had attempted suicide, after it began "treating them in the same way Palestinian hostages are treated by Israel."

The spokesman for the Al-Quds Brigades, the PIJ's military wing, said in a statement, "Several enemy hostages attempted suicide with determination, as a result of the extreme frustration they felt, after being neglected by their government, and differently treated by the security units of the Al-Quds Brigades that deprived them of some of the privileges that were provided before the criminal Nazi enemy army committed the heinous Nuseirat crime, in which hundreds of innocent Palestinians were killed."

"Our decision in the Al-Quds Brigades to treat the enemy's hostages as ours are treated inside the prisons will remain in effect as long as the terrorist government (Israel) continues its unjust measures towards our people and our hostages," he warned, without specifying the new measures.

Hamas and Islamic Jihad movements took about 250 hostages from inside Israel during the surprise attack on October 7.

US-backed mediation efforts by Egypt and Qatar have so far failed to conclude a ceasefire in Gaza.

Hamas says any agreement must end the war and lead to a complete Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.

In return, Israel says it will only accept a temporary halt to the fighting, determined to "eliminate Hamas."

The potential agreement would include the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza in exchange for some Palestinian hostages held in Israeli prisons.

The war in Gaza has resulted in nearly 38,000 deaths, mostly children and women, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, with many more feared buried under rubble as much of the enclave has been destroyed and most of its 2.3 million residents displaced. The conflict has also led to widespread hunger and allegations of genocide, which Israel denies.