Ambassador: Ukrainians possibly among Hamas hostages
Ukrainian citizens may be among those taken hostage by Hamas, Ukraine's Ambassador to Israel Yevhen Korniychuk said on Oct. 13 on a talk show on Suspilne TV.
Korniychuk stressed that there is currently no concrete information that they are among those held captive, but noted that Israeli authorities have indicated that it is a possibility.
On Oct. 12, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry reported that seven Ukrainians had died during Hamas' assault on Ukraine, and another nine were still reported as missing.
Korniychuk added that he does not think the number of dead would change "significantly," but that Ukrainian authorities are working closely with their Israeli counterparts to provide DNA samples and other ways to help identify missing people.
Ukrainian authorities on the ground in Israel are working to repatriate the bodies of those killed in the attacks.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleh Nikolenko said on Oct. 9 that there are currently 14,000 Ukrainian citizens listed on the consular register of Ukraine's embassy in Israel.
On Oct. 11, Korniychuk announced that Ukraine would start evacuating its citizens from Israel.
The Palestinian armed militant group Hamas launched an attack of unprecedented scale on Israel on Oct. 7, using missiles and soldiers who infiltrated into Israeli territory. As of Oct. 13, thousands of Israelis and Palestinians have died, and at least 150 Israelis and other foreigners held hostage by Hamas.
Alexander Query
