An advisor to Al Qaeda’s likely current leader has urged Hamas to free its Israeli hostages in Gaza, according to the American jihadist monitoring group SITE.
Mustafa Hamid, also known as Abu Walid al-Masri, made this online statement on Friday. He is the father-in-law of Saif al-Adel, who is widely believed to lead Al Qaeda now.
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Hamid expressed concern that the focus on retrieving Israeli hostages was overshadowing the plight of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel and praised Yahya Sinwar.
He stated that Hamas must “immediately” return the hostages and their remains, insisting this issue should be resolved to avoid further consequences. He criticized the lack of concern for Palestinian prisoners in media, negotiations, and protests.