Hamas hints 6 slain hostages extracted by IDF from Gaza over weekend were murdered because troops were near
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
The Hamas terror group strongly hints that it murdered the six hostages whose bodies were recovered by the IDF from a tunnel in southern Gaza’s Rafah over the weekend.
In a statement, the spokesman for the military wing of Hamas says that following Israel’s successful hostage rescue in Nuseirat in June, new protocols were given to terrorists guarding the abductees if Israeli troops were approaching them.
“We say to everyone clearly that after the Nuseirat incident, new instructions were issued to the mujahideen assigned to guard the prisoners regarding dealing with them if the occupation army approached their place of detention,” Hudhaifa Kahlout — known by the nom de guerre Abu Obeida — says.
Hamas is believed by Israel to have given standing orders to operatives who are holding hostages, to kill the captives if they think Israeli forces are nearing.
The six hostages recovered over the weekend — Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Ori Danino, Alex Lobanov, Carmel Gat, and Almog Sarusi — were killed just days before troops found them, according to autopsies and the IDF.
“Netanyahu’s insistence on liberating the prisoners through military pressure instead of concluding a deal will mean that they will return to their families inside coffins and their families will have to choose whether they are dead or alive,” Abu Obeida adds.
At the beginning of the war, Abu Obeida threatened to execute Israeli hostages and release footage of the killings.
Alongside the announcement, Hamas releases a propaganda illustration depicting an Israeli hostage being held captive and a terrorist holding a handgun behind them.
The image is accompanied by a caption in Hebrew and Arabic, reading: “Military pressure = death and failure. Exchange deal = Freedom and life.”
