Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has ordered the Foreign Affairs Ministry to fact-check CCTV footage apparently showing Hamas militants taking a Thai citizen to a hospital in Gaza City after the Oct 7 massacre in southern Israel.
Despite not receiving any reports of further attacks by Hamas, Mr Srettha affirmed that the government would continue assisting Thais living in Israel after the killings and abductions.
Dr Prommin Lertsuridej, secretary-general to the Prime Minister, will follow up on the mission to rescue the Thai hostages now being held by Hamas in Gaza, he added.
The premier's interview on Monday followed the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) publishing CCTV footage and still images showing Hamas fighters bringing two people, claimed to be Nepali and Thai, to Al-Shifa Hospital in the Gaza Strip on Oct 7.
The surveillance footage shows bloodied victims being carried into the hospital on gurneys. They appear to have been badly injured by Hamas.
One of the videos shows a hostage with a wounded arm being brought into the hospital through the main entrance and marched by force through the building while a second is forcefully dragged inside.
IDF spokesperson Rear Adm Daniel Hagari, who presented the clips, said in a news conference on Sunday that the Israeli intelligence officers who found the CCTV footage were part of an operation to try to locate hostages.
He added that Hamas might have been taking the pair for treatment before moving them to new hiding spots, such as nearby apartments.
The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, meanwhile, questioned the authenticity of the surveillance footage and still images.
Kanchana Patarachoke, spokeswoman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said she believed the Thai in the footage was still alive.
Negotiations to secure the release of the Thai hostages are still ongoing, said Ms Kanchana.
"The government still has high hopes of them being safely released," she said.
Return requests from Thai labourers in Israel are still being processed despite the Collective Centre shutting down on Nov 4, she added.
