Families and supporters of hostages held in Gaza after being kidnapped from Israel by Hamas gunmen take part in a protest calling for their immediate release in Tel Aviv, Israel, October 26, 2023. Portal/Tomer Appelbaum acquire license rights
MOSCOW, Oct 26 (Portal) – A delegation from Hamas visited Moscow on Thursday for talks on the release of foreign hostages, including Russian citizens, that the militant group is currently holding in Gaza, Russian news agencies reported, citing the Foreign Ministry.
TASS reported that senior Hamas member Abu Marzouk also took part in the talks.
“Contacts were held with him to continue the Russian line for the immediate release of foreign hostages in the Gaza Strip. Issues related to ensuring the evacuation of Russian and other foreign citizens from the territory of the Palestinian enclave were also discussed,” TASS said.
Russia has ties to all major players in the Middle East, including Israel, Iran, the Palestinian Authority and Hamas, the militant Islamist group that controls Gaza.
Moscow has repeatedly blamed the current crisis on the failure of US diplomacy and called for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and the resumption of talks to find a peace solution.
According to the Russian news agency RIA, Hamas released its own statement praising the efforts of Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Foreign Ministry to end what it described as “Israel’s Western-backed crimes.”
Israel has vowed to wipe out Hamas in retaliation for an Oct. 7 attack that killed 1,400 people. Israel has attacked Gaza from the air, besieging the enclave of 2.3 million people and is preparing a ground invasion. According to Palestinian authorities, more than 6,500 people were killed.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at a weekly briefing on Thursday that Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Baghiri Kani was also currently in Moscow.
Sakharova did not provide any further information. Baghiri Kani is Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator. Iran is a strong supporter of Hamas in the conflict with Hamas.
Reporting by Portal, Editing by Gareth Jones
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