The United States has deployed drones over Gaza to help search for hostages held by Hamas, the Pentagon confirmed Friday, as talks were underway on a pause in the fighting to allow the hostages’ release.
The hostages, seized on October 7, come from about 40 countries, with some reports claiming that 14 Americans are among them.
“In support of hostage recovery efforts, the US is conducting unarmed UAV flights over Gaza, providing advice and assistance to support our Israeli partner as they work on their hostage recovery efforts,” said Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder, Pentagon press secretary, during a briefing on Friday.
“These UAV flights began after Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7.”
It is unclear how valuable the aerial surveillance will be, as the hostages are believed to be held underground.
Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder, the Pentagon’s press secretary, confirmed Friday that drones are being deployed over Gaza to help search for hostages
The drones are MQ-9 Reaper drones, which are remotely controlled from the United States
Four have been released so far, saying they were being held in tunnels.
The information obtained by the MQ-9 Reapers is being shared with Israel, but is aimed at finding the estimated 242 hostages, and not at locating Hamas terrorists for targeted airstrikes, Ryder stressed.
He said the United States “did not participate in the development of IDF objectives” or “help them conduct their campaign” in Gaza.
“We, the US military, do not participate in the development of IDF targets and assist them in conducting their campaign – just to be crystal clear that it is their operation,” Ryder said.
“That planning element provides planning and intelligence support when it comes to hostage recovery.”
Christopher Maier, an assistant defense secretary, suggested earlier this week that US special forces commandos have also been deployed to help the Israelis find them.
“We are actively helping the Israelis do a number of things,” Maier said at a special operations conference in Washington DC.
Israel has been bombing Gaza mercilessly since the Hamas terror attacks, which killed 1,400 people.
The death toll in Gaza has risen to 9,000, according to Gaza health authorities, who operate in the Hamas-controlled enclave.
The shocking scenes of destruction in Gaza have sparked protests worldwide and prompted calls for a ceasefire.
A map from the Turkish agency Anadolu shows where Israeli troops have advanced in Gaza
The US does not support demands for a ceasefire – which would amount to laying down arms in the long term – but instead promotes the idea of a ‘humanitarian pause’, to allow aid and to let injured people and hostages out.
A senior US official said on Friday that talks were underway on a “very important” pause to secure the release of dozens of hostages.
‘It is something that is being discussed very seriously and actively. But there is no agreement yet to actually make this happen,” the official said.
Getting that many people out “will require a fairly significant pause in hostilities.”
But the official warned: “There is absolutely no guarantee that a) that will happen or b) when it will happen.”
Joe Biden has backed “temporary, localized” pauses.
Speaking at a fundraiser earlier this week, he said: “I think we need a break. A break means you get time to get the prisoners out.”
However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned that there can be no “temporary ceasefire” in Gaza unless Hamas releases the hostages.
President Joe Biden, pictured in Minnesota on Wednesday, was heckled by a rabbi demanding a ceasefire in Gaza
Benjamin Netanyahu speaks on October 14 with soldiers preparing to invade Gaza
Antony Blinken, the Secretary of State, was in Tel Aviv on Friday and told Israelis that a humanitarian pause would buy Israel more time for its operation in Gaza. Axios reported.
Blinken said the United States accepts that Israel’s expulsion of Hamas from Gaza will be a long process, but that there must now be a pause to release the hostages.
He also reportedly told them that the Biden administration was facing growing domestic anger over their support for Israeli actions, and that Israel needed to be more aware of the civilian casualties.
“The Biden administration supports us, but they have their limitations – including at home. We want to help them,” a senior Israeli official told Axios.
Blinken will travel to Jordan on Saturday and meet with the foreign ministers of Jordan, Egypt, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, as well as Hussein al-Sheikh, chief adviser to Palestinian President Abbas.