British-Israeli hostage dies from injuries sustained in Israeli airstrike on Gaza: Hamas

GAZA CITY, Palestine

The Hamas armed wing Al-Qassam Brigades announced on Saturday the death of a British national in its custody in the Gaza Strip as a result of injuries sustained during an Israeli airstrike last month.

“Nadav Popplewell, a 51-year-old British citizen, died today after being seriously injured a month ago (due to Zionist airstrikes),” the Hamas military wing said in a video message released on Telegram.

The video revealed that Popplewell’s mother, Channah Peri, was released as part of a hostage swap deal, while “the son (Nadav) was left to face death.”

It showed a clip of the hostage speaking while his injury was visible in his eye.

Al-Qassam Brigades spokesman Abu Ubaida said Popplewell’s health condition “deteriorated” until “he succumbed due to not receiving intensive medical care in health care facilities as a result of the enemy’s destruction of hospitals in the Gaza Strip and their being out of service.”

On Tuesday, the Al-Qassam Brigades announced the death of the Israeli hostage Judih Weinstein due to injuries she sustained from an Israeli bombardment on the Gaza Strip a month ago.

Tel Aviv believes 134 Israelis are being held in Gaza, while Israel is holding 9,000 Palestinians in its jails.

Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip following Palestinian resistance group Hamas’ cross-border attack on Oct. 7, 2023, which killed about 1,200 people.

Nearly 34,950 Palestinians, most of them women and children, have since been killed, and nearly 78,600 others injured, according to Palestinian health authorities.

Seven months into the conflict, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). An interim ruling in January said it is “plausible” that Tel Aviv is committing genocide in Gaza, ordering it to stop such acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

South Africa on Friday asked the ICJ to order Israel to withdraw from Rafah as part of additional emergency measures over the war.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala​​​​​​​

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