Ukraine's Ambassador to Israel Yevhen Korniychuk has told Suspilne that Ukrainian citizens may be among people taken hostage by Hamas militants.
"It should be understood that we do not know the whereabouts of a certain number of people, and it is possible that some of them may be in captivity. We were informed about this by Israeli services, but this has not been verified yet. Please do not make a fuss, but it is most likely true," Korniychuk said.
He added that Ukrainian diplomats closely cooperate with the Israeli police in the search for Ukrainian citizens.
"We are constantly looking for people both by DNA and fingerprints. The police are helping us to find new people. I don't think the number (of the dead - ed.) will change significantly," Korniychuk said.
The diplomat also recalled that out of the seven Ukrainians killed, only one had a Ukrainian passport.
"This means that the other six lived in Israel permanently and also had Israeli passports. This in no way diminishes their rights as citizens of Ukraine, just for your understanding that one traveller, unfortunately, died. The rest are local residents," he explained
Yesterday, Korniychuk said that 200 Ukrainians would be able to fly out of Israel on Saturday. Further evacuation flights will depend on demand.