evidence: Israeli strikes on evacuee convoys in Gaza kill 70, Hamas says [...] The Israel Defense Forces have been conducting localized raids on the ground in the Gaza Strip over the past day "in an effort to eliminate the threat of terrorists and weapons in the area and locate hostages," the IDF said in a statement Friday evening local time. [...] TEL AVIV — For Israeli families desperate to be reunited with their loved ones who were taken hostage by Hamas, the militant group's claim today that 13 hostages died in Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip comes as a new and devastating blow. NBC News has not verified Hamas' claim.