MOSCOW: Russia on Friday urged Hamas to release all hostages during talks with the group in Moscow, saying the humanitarian situation in Gaza had reached “catastrophic” levels.

Russian diplomat Mikhail Bogdanov “stressed the need for the speedy release of civilians captured during the attacks of 7 October” in talks with Hamas senior official Musa Abu Marzouk, the foreign ministry said.

The Palestinian group said in a statement that the talks were “to clarify the movement’s position and policies for dealing with the file of prisoners” it was holding.

Israel, Hamas working toward new truce, hostage deal

The statement added that they had also discussed securing a ceasefire in the besieged territory and Bogdanov had expressed Russia’s “support of the rights of the Palestinian people”.

Hamas fighters launched attacks on October 7 that resulted in the deaths of about 1,140 people in Israel, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.

Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas.

Its military response has so far killed at least 24,762 in Gaza, around 70 percent of them women, young children and adolescents, according to the territory’s health ministry.