Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova urged on Friday for the release of Russian-Israeli citizens who are being held hostage by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza after a video message from one of the hostages appeared online a few days ago.
"As of today, more than one hundred people remain in captivity. We proceed from the fact that the capture and prolonged forced detention of innocent people in captivity cannot be justified by anything. We repeat our call for the immediate and unconditional release of all civilians in the hands of Palestinian groups and, first and foremost, our compatriots A. Trufanov and M. Kharkin," Zakharova told reporters, adding that "political and diplomatic methods have proven to be the most effective in resolving the hostage problem."
Zakharova also noted that two Russian citizens, Trufanov's mother and grandmother, were released from captivity after an agreement between Israel and Hamas in November 2023.
