Two American officials said that the United States is conducting drone reconnaissance flights over the Gaza Strip in search of hostages held by the "Hamas" movement.

The New York Times reported that the reconnaissance flights conducted by American drones over the Gaza Strip, which aim to help locate the hostages, look for "signs of life," and relay information to the Israeli army, focus mainly on the southern Gaza Strip, while the Israeli army is operating on the ground in the north.

Pentagon officials confirmed that this is the first time American drones are operating over Gaza, emphasizing that the drones are unarmed and do not support the offensive activities of the Israeli army in the area.

An aviation researcher who follows the flights told the newspaper that it appears there are at least six MQ-9 drones involved in the operations to locate hostages.

American officials say that 10 Americans are missing and may be among 242 people held in Gaza and are believed to be located in Hamas’s extensive tunnel network.