FRANKFURT – Israel will not hold off on a possible ground invasion of Gaza over the issue of captives being held there, Israel's Energy Minister told German tabloid newspaper Bild.

Hamas gunmen killed 1,400 people and took more than 200 hostages in an assault on southern Israel on Oct 7.

Since then, Israel has been conducting an aerial bombardment campaign on the Gaza Strip that has killed at least 5,000 Palestinians.

In an interview published on Tuesday, Israeli Energy Minister Israel Katz said everything would be done to bring the hostages home.

“But that cannot hinder our actions, including the ground offensive, if we decide on it,” he was quoted as saying.

"Hamas wants us to deal with the captives and wants the military to not go in to eliminate their infrastructure. That will not happen," Mr Katz added.

The armed wing of Hamas said on Monday it had released two more female civilian captives on health grounds in response to Egyptian-Qatari mediation efforts. REUTERS