Israel is waiting with bated breath for Iran’s expected response to the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh. The political leader of Hamas. Hamas is struggling to survive and has little ability to strike back at Israel. Iran, however, has been the main conspirator behind this terrorist axis that surrounds Israel.
Hamas’ innocent hostages are the only thing they still have. Hamas chose to strike Israel in a way that would hurt them the most, rather than waiting for Israel to bomb or launch other attacks.
Hamas announced that the guards of hostages killed one man, and severely injured two women, on Tish’a B’Av. This is the day Israel calls “the saddest day in the Jewish calendar,” because it commemorates when the Jewish temples were destroyed, and the Jews sent into exile.
They announced the news as if they were in shock, and promised to “investigate.” They claim that the guards took their justice into their hands because they were overwhelmed by grief and anger over Israel’s “massacre.”
Abu Obeida said that in two separate incidents, guards shot and killed an Israeli male hostage, and severely injured two other female hostages.
The spokesperson did not name the victims, nor did he specify the date or location of the incidents. He only stated that the terror group had formed an investigation committee.
The “unrelated” incidents were not an accident, since there was already talk of retaliation during the day of mourning. Israel and the U.S. were mobilizing to prevent an attack by Iran, which could happen at any time. Perhaps the terrorists chose a different path that would not necessarily escalate war. It is possible to harm us all by killing some hostages, but it will not make a significant difference in terms of changing the war. It is a sad reality that terrorists are holding innocents hostage. The leverage is unbalanced.
Hamas has refused to take part in the new round of talks that was to start on 15th August. It could be that they don’t have anything left to offer and are unwilling to part with their bargaining chip. It could also be because their newly-elected leader, Yahya Sinwar, wants to play hardball, thinking he still has a chance of winning.
At this time, the IDF is unable to confirm or deny Hamas’s claims.
In a press release, the Israeli Defense Forces stated that “at this stage, there is no document of intelligence to confirm or refute Hamas’ allegations.”
The IDF said that it would update the public as soon as we had any new information.
Hamas, in the past, has blamed Israel for all hostage deaths. However, not all of Hamas’ claims that a hostage was dead were true. In one case, a woman who was reported as dead was released later in a hostage exchange. The Bibas family’s fate is also in doubt. Are they dead, or are they being held for a premium as a bargaining chip? Hamas could be lying in this instance. We must now ask who has been killed. What women were injured and by whom? What injuries did they suffer?
Hamas is numbered but this also makes hostages more vulnerable than ever. We continue to pray and hope for a quick resolution of this conflict, and the release of the hostages still held captive, including five Americans.
