US dual citizen taken hostage dies in Gaza, Israeli forum says

PHOTO CAPTION: An Israeli soldier secures a tunnel underneath Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, amid the ongoing ground operation of the Israeli army against Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in the northern Gaza Strip, November 22, 2023. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - A U.S. dual national who was among some 240 people seized during the Oct 7 cross-border rampage by Hamas in southern Israel has died in captivity in the Gaza Strip, a group representing hostages' families said on Friday.

Gadi Haggai, 73, also held Israeli citizenship, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said. Drawing on various information sources, an Israeli government-appointed committee has been declaring some hostages dead in absentia.

Hamas has generally not confirmed these accounts, but has warned that "time is running out" for the hostages as the Palestinian militants' war with Israel nears its 12th week.

According to an official Israeli tally, 129 people remain held in Gaza after the rest were repatriated in a November truce or recovered during a military offensive. Of those still in Gaza, 22 are dead, the Israeli government says.

The forum said that between five and 10 of the hostages hold U.S. citizenship. The U.S. Embassy had no immediate comment.



(Writing by Dan Williams; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)