Foreign Minister Santiago Cafiero has requested United Nations support to secure the release of the 21 Argentine hostages held by Palestinian Islamist group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Cafiero also promised that Argentina would collaborate with humanitarian aid in the area through the White Helmets Commission during a meeting with UN Secretary-General António Guterres.

The minister wrote that he had had a “fruitful” conversation with Guterres on social network X (formerly Twitter) late on Thursday. Earlier in the day, he said that he had met with Jewish community groups in Argentina to discuss what steps to take to demand the hostages be freed.

“We are going to be based in Egypt, which today is the gateway for all humanitarian aid for the area. We will be collaborating there,” Cafiero said in an interview with Radio 10 on Thursday. “This was the commitment I made yesterday with the United Nations.”

On Thursday morning, the fourth repatriation flight carrying Argentines from Israel arrived in Buenos Aires, carrying 247 people. President Alberto Fernández celebrated their return on X (formerly Twitter).

“The Safe Return operation, in charge of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the Armed Forces in coordination with the Foreign Ministry and the Ministry of Defense allowed, so far, the repatriation from Israel of 1,023 nationals and the evacuation of 146,” Fernández said.

“We ratify, once again, the condemnation of Hamas’ terrorist actions and reiterate the demand for the immediate release of the Argentine hostages,” Fernández said.

Francisco Tropepi, chargé d’affaires at the Argentine embassy in Israel, said on Thursday that the youngest Hamas hostage is an Argentine baby aged just nine months.

“We have nine Argentines among the people who have died as a direct result of the attack of last October 7, as well as more than twenty Argentines held hostage in the Gaza Strip,” Tropepi told the Jewish community news network Vis a Vis. 

Israel declared war after Hamas launched the biggest attack on Israel in years on October 7. United Nations special rapporteurs and human rights groups have accused both Israel and Hamas of war crimes.

So far, more than 7,000 people have been killed in Gaza and 1,400 in Israel.

Argentines in Israel

If you’re an Argentine who needs assistance in Israel, you have to enter a register that the Argentine consulate in Tel Aviv is compiling.

To be included, you must email [email protected] with your full name, national identity document (DNI) number, a phone number, current location, a relative’s contact information, medical conditions (if any), and any other relevant information, the Foreign Ministry said.

Argentine nationals requiring urgent assistance in Israel should call the Tel Aviv consulate’s emergency number: +972 52 597 8359.

The Foreign Ministry has also launched a national phone line for people who need information or wish to inform the authorities about Argentine relatives who are currently in Israel and need assistance. They should call or send a WhatsApp message to +54 9 1140411522.

— With information from Télam