The Palestinian militant organisation Hamas has threatened to disappear the remaining Israeli hostages it holds as Israeli forces step up their offensive in Gaza City.

The group on Saturday published a photo montage and pictures of 47 hostages with each captioned with the name Ron Arad.

Arad was an Israeli soldier who was taken prisoner after crashing a warplane in Lebanon in 1986.

His fate has been the source of heavy speculation and public concern ever since as his remains have never been found.

A dignified funeral is of the utmost importance for many Israelis for religious and social reasons.

This is especially true for fallen soldiers: the Israeli military has a code that stipulates that soldiers "will not be left behind," neither alive nor dead.

Following Israel's decision to ca

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