TEL AVIV, October 29. /TASS/. The number of hostages held in the Gaza Strip is at least 230, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Spokesman Daniel Hagari said at a briefing.

"We (the Israeli military - TASS) have notified 230 families of the kidnapped," he said.

"We are doing everything possible to bring the kidnapped home. Soldiers are fighting on the battlefield including for this goal," Hagari added.

Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7 when militants from the radical Palestinian group Hamas staged a surprise attack on Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip, killing residents of Israeli border settlements and taking hostages, including children, women and the elderly. Hamas described its attack as a response to the aggressive actions of Israeli authorities against the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City. Israel has announced a total blockade of the Gaza Strip and has been delivering air strikes on Gaza as well as some parts of Lebanon and Syria. Clashes are also underway in the West Bank.