Push to Free Israeli Hostages in Gaza Hindered by Mistrust, Anger, Confusion and Very Disappointed

Hopes of a breakthrough have repeatedly faded, leaving the fate of more than 200 prisoners uncertain.

In the days after Hamas militants stormed into Israel, killing at least 1,200 people and kidnapping scores of others, Egyptian officials spent hours on the phone with the Islamist group’s leaders pressing a seemingly simple question: How many Israeli hostages did they hold?

Hamas Indeed didn’t have an answer.