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October 18, 2024 - 1:00pm
Yesterday, the Israeli government announced the death of Yahya Sinwar, the longtime head of Hamas and chief orchestrator of last year’s surprise attack against Israel.
Sinwar’s death appears to be a happy coincidence rather than the result of a targeted assassination. On 16 October, a unit of reservists spotted and opened fire on three figures in an abandoned building; a drone was sent to investigate and found a solitary, wounded figure, who promptly threw a plank of wood at the device. After a tank shell ended Sinwar’s resistance, troops recognised the body as that of the fugitive Hamas leader. They were fearful of booby traps, so at first the corpse was not removed — instead a finger was taken away, so it could be checked against the prints kept from Sinwar’s stints in Israeli jails.
The building was near the tunnels where the bodies of six Israeli hostages were discovered a couple of months ago. It’s now believed that these hostages were kept close to Sinwar as human shields, to deter any missile or bomb strikes.
As well as being a coup for Israel in an otherwise bloody campaign, it will doubtless have a profound effect on Hamas. However, it also puts the remaining hostages in fresh jeopardy.
While some hopeful analysts reckon that Sinwar’s death might allow for a recovery of the remaining Israelis held in Gaza, since he was reportedly more obstinate than other Hamas leaders in his demands, there are at the moment no ceasefire discussions ongoing, and it might be some time before they resume.
On Thursday, Einav Zangauker, whose son Matan was kidnapped on 7 October, told the media that “now more than ever the life of my son is in tangible danger”. The lack of clear leadership and desire for revenge might prompt some of the Hamas operatives still holding hostages to lash out.
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SubscribeSo if Israel plays nice, the terrorists might treat the hostages better. Is this a serious argument?
Israel could easily negotiate the return of the hostages if it agrees to a cease-fire in Gaza. That deal has been there for months. If Israel continues to fight, there is no incentive for Hamas to return the hostages alive.
There is no incentive for Hamas to release any of the hostages dead or alive since as soon as they release them back to the Israelis they will have lost any bargaining power. Nothing short of complete defeat and destruction of Hamas will result in release of the hostages.
I declare myself Hamas,they gonna kill me.
You are already brain dead, so there is no need to kill you.
Because they haven’t got them so they can’t return them which gives old Shit brain the pretext to go on and on bombing.
I didn’t even have the read this article. It was a waste of words. Author is “Captain Onvious”
So, yet more idle speculation based on nothing at all.
Yes, I’m not sure this article was actually worth printing. I was expecting some substance. It’s just stating one of several obvious possible outcomes.
I assume that the Israeli armed forces and intelligence community have much more information about the hostages than they are making public. It’s likely to be pretty grim. So I’m left to wonder: how many live hostages could Hamas produce if they wanted to?
Hamas is a depraved organization and a danger to everyone who gets within miles of them. And they’re not the only ones among the Palestinians who committed atrocities and took hostages. Furthermore, many of the “innocent Gazans” are likely to be aware of the location of hostages and the names of the criminals holding them.
The fate of the hostages is a terribly complex conundrum.
This is true. Islamic Jihad never gets a mention.
Israel’s message is ‘Mess with us and we will kill you’. Everything else is noise.
So Israel is not willing to give up anything to get the hostages returned alive?
Seems like not all Jews are David Kossoff,Lionel Blair,and Judith Kerr then. Oh for the 1960s.
What I don’t comprehend is,if these hostages are held by Hamas in Gaza territory at an unknown location how can any of them be alive. We are told that Gaza territory has been and is being comprehensively bombed,carpet bombed. If a bomb hasnt got them by now surely they must have starved. We are told there is no food in Gaza,no water,no medication. And if they are being held underground in a tunnel thats even worse. What if the ones who know where they are,who bring them food and water have been killed. But of course it’s nonsense on stilts. Bibi has no desire to “find” the hostages because then he’ll have to stop bombing and killing and get sent to jail. The fact is,the remaining hostages of such are still alive are being held by agents of the Israeli state ie Mossad operatives under direction from the big bosses,the CIA,. It is the CIA,a crime organization that evolved from a Mafia base that planned,organised,staffed and enabled the Oct 7th attack,those RAPES were AMERICAN Y’all. This created the Pretext for Yahoos Final.Solution. Just as,decades before,the wealthiest of Jewish dynasties and industrialists decided to do an Abraham and sacrifice….they funded a plan that by creating the most astonishing astounding horror ever enabled the most undeniable pretext ever.
Poe’s law in action.
Idiot!
Happens to be the truth. Truth hurts.
Gosh
Go back on your medication.
In mid-1945, the Japanese Army and Navy ordered that in the event Japan was invaded, all Allied POWs should be executed. This quickly became known to the Allies. Nobody suggested this was a reason to stop prosecuting the war. While the POWs were of high importance and great measures would be taken to save as many as possible, nobody confused the ultimate purpose of the war with saving POWs. (Fortunately, Japan surrendered before it came to the test, and the Allies immediately made liberating the POWs one of their most urgent priorities, before renegade POW camp commanders disobeyed the Emperor and took matters into their own hands.).
That was when we were led by people of substance and courage and resolve, and the population, itself, also had those qualities.
Unfortunately, as articles like this show, the Islamic terrorists are to a great degree correct wen they say the West is now weak and decadent.
Very interesting! I never heard this before but it holds water and is more believable than the reasons (for using the Bombs) that I heard when I was a kid.
If you support Hamas a number of things are in place.
You approve of murdering people. You support cooking babies live in front of their parents. You support raping and mutilating teenagers.
If you support Hamas you support evil. Pleading you are a civilian is no defence.
What a rubbish article.
Do we pay money, as subscribers, for this?
Yes, you do. Next question….