A senior Israeli negotiator told AFP Monday that tens of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza are certainly alive and that Israel cannot accept halting the war until all captives are released in a deal. Hamas militants seized 251 hostages on 7 October, of whom Israel believes 116 remain in Gaza, including 41 who the army says are dead. “Tens are alive with certainty,” the official said on condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to speak publicly on the issue. “We cannot leave them there a long time, they will die,” he said, adding that a vast majority of them were being held by Hamas militan…