The Palestinian Islamic Jihad has offered to release two hostages on “humanitarian grounds.” In a video released Thursday, the organization’s spokesman, Abu Hamza, declared the terrorist group’s intention to free an elderly woman and a young boy. The hostages have been identified as Yagil Yaakov, 13, and Hanna Katzir, 77, based on the video footage released by the PIJ. It is the first time that this terror group has shown video of hostages abducted by its terrorist members. The video included statements from the hostages dictated to them by their barbaric captors, in which they are forced to parrot terrorist talking points blaming Israel for the murderous terror attack on Simchas Torah that resulted in the deaths of 1,400 of their family, friends and neighbors. The PIJ comes on the heels of the IDF stating that the 162nd Division, supported by the Israeli Air Force and special forces, conducted a raid in Gaza City’s military quarter, close to Shifa Hospital, which is a known hub for Hamas’s intelligence and operational activities. According to the IDF, the military district has been pivotal for Hamas’s planning, including the orchestration of the attack on October 7th. The Givati Brigade and other IDF units have been actively working to dismantle terrorist infrastructure in the region, encountering fierce resistance. The IDF reports that in the process of clearing the area, they have encountered and neutralized a vast network of underground tunnels, engaged in combat with multiple terrorists—resulting in over 50 terrorist fatalities—and destroyed significant military assets including documents, missile production facilities, and anti-aircraft weaponry. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)