Middle East Crisis> Hamas Says It Does Not Know How Many Hostages Are Still Alive

Hamas has said it does not know how many hostages are still alive after a deadly attack on a bus in Israel.

The militant group claimed responsibility for the attack, which left four people dead and 16 injured.

The Israeli military said it had killed three attackers and was searching for a fourth.

The attack took place near the West Bank settlement of Givat Assaf, close to the Palestinian city of Ramallah.

The Israeli military said the attackers had opened fire on a bus carrying Israeli civilians, before detonating explosives.

Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said the group was not aware of the number of hostages who were still alive.

“We do not have information about the number of hostages,” Barhoum said. “We are not responsible for the lives of the hostages.”

The Israeli military said it had launched a search and rescue operation to find any survivors.

The attack comes as tensions have been rising in the region, with Israel and the Palestinian Authority accusing each other of escalating violence.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the attack was a “terrorist act” and vowed to take “strong action” against those responsible.

“We will not allow terrorists to harm our citizens,” Netanyahu said. “We will continue to take strong action against those who seek to harm us.”

The Palestinian Authority condemned the attack and called for an end to the violence.

“We condemn this terrorist attack and call for an end to the violence,” Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said. “We call on all parties to exercise restraint and to work towards a peaceful resolution of the conflict.”

The attack is the latest in a series of violent incidents in the region. Earlier this week, a Palestinian teenager was killed by Israeli forces in the West Bank, and a Palestinian man was shot and killed by Israeli soldiers near the Gaza Strip.

Israel and the Palestinian Authority have been locked in a conflict for decades, with the Israeli military frequently carrying out raids in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and Palestinian militants launching attacks against Israeli targets.

The conflict has resulted in the deaths of thousands of people and the displacement of hundreds of thousands more.