U.S. believes likelihood of rescuing all Hamas hostages extremely low

A source familiar with the Biden administration’s response to the hostage crisis on Thursday said possibility of rescuing all hostages taken by Hamas on Oct. 7 are extremely low.

“There is a grim acknowledgment that the likelihood of all the hostages being rescued is extremely low. You have to be prepared for a worst-case scenario,’’ the source said.

According to the report, as the hostage crisis continues, all efforts around it will largely be made in secret.

The report stated that the U.S. and Israeli officials are jointly working to gather intelligence on the whereabouts of the hostages.

“While a ground invasion by Israel could put their lives at greater risk, the U.S. may not have much of a say in whatever choice Israel ends up making.’’

The U.S. is “basically operating with one arm tied behind our back’’ in this situation, the source said.

At least 30 U.S. citizens have been killed since the start of the escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The number of Americans held hostage by Hamas is unknown.

On Oct.7, the Palestinian movement Hamas launched a surprise large-scale rocket attack on Israel, prompting the latter to declare a state of war the following day, launching retaliatory strikes.

On Oct. 9, Israel ordered a complete blockade of the Gaza Strip, home to more than two million people, cutting off supplies of water, food and fuel.

Both Israel and Palestine have reported over 1,000 deaths and thousands of injured as a result of the escalation.