Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Wednesday reviewed the ongoing relief and rescue operations in the tunnel under construction in Silkyara of Uttarkashi.
"We have information that Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad use some hospitals in the Gaza Strip, including al-Shifa, and tunnels underneath them to conceal and to support their military operations and to hold hostages," spokesperson John Kirby told reporters during a briefing.
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Tuesday reviewed the status of relief and rescue operations with senior officials at his residence to save 40 people trapped in Silkyara tunnel located on Uttarkashi-Yamnotri road.
The operations were carried out by Police at Phaisen Check Gate and by joint teams comprising Champhai Police Station staff, Zokhawthar Police Station Staff and the 42nd Assam Rifles Battalion, said the police.
However, talking about the information about the relief and rescue operations, the Chief Minister said that various state and central agencies are engaged in relief and rescue operations with mutual coordination and promptness.
During the inspection, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami directed the officials to speed up the relief and rescue work. He said that it is the top priority of the government to quickly rescue the labourers trapped in the tunnel, for which every possible effort is being made.
The SDRF team, which is leading the rescue operations at an under-construction tunnel in Uttarkashi, a portion of which collapsed earlier on Sunday, started removing debris from the scene.
The chief of staff of Israel Defence Forces (IDF), Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, spoke with the troops over the radio as he flew over the Gaza Strip to take stock of the ongoing ground operations against Hamas, The Times of Israel reported on Sunday.
Uttarkashi District Magistrate Abhishek Ruhela on Sunday said that the priority of the administration is to evacuate workers, trapped inside the under-construction tunnel which caved in the previous night, and that the rescue operations are being conducted on war footing.