Last night the IDF recovered the bodies of six hostages who were executed by Hamas. The bodies were found in a Khan Yunis tunnel. The hostages were identified as Alexander Dancyg, 76, Yoram Metzger, 80, Avraham Munder, 79, Yagev Buchshtab, 34, Nadav Popplewell, 51, and Haim Perry, 79.
Yagev Buchshtab, Alexander Dancyg, Avraham Munder, Yoram Metzger, Nadav Popplewell and Haim Perry’s bodies were rescued from the Khan Yunis area in Gaza. They were abducted by Hamas on Oct. 7.
The rescue operation was enabled by precise intelligence from the ISA, intelligence… pic.twitter.com/SNIOlxHH1G
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) August 20, 2024
The hostages had been held for ten months in what other rescued hostages have described as unlivable conditions. They were reported to be underground in the tunnels with very little air, starved, beaten, and abused psychologically.
Four of the hostages had other family members also taken captive, some of them released in the early hostage exchange.
Ohad was freed from Hamas captivity. His grandfather Avraham was murdered. pic.twitter.com/s0Wu4h2Ptc
— Eylon Levy (@EylonALevy) August 20, 2024
All of the hostages had been previously declared dead by Israel before the recovery, but it still is a heartbreaking reality to be recovering bodies and not live hostages.
“Mr Munder’s death was confirmed on Tuesday by Kibbutz Nir Oz, the farming community where he was among around 80 residents who were taken captive. It said he died “after enduring months of physical and mental torture”. Israeli authorities had previously determined that the other five were dead.”
This news comes after yet again Hamas rejected a ceasefire proposal last week. They claim Netanyahu keeps moving the goalpost, the exact thing they kept doing, but in reality, it should be clear by now that they have no intention of agreeing to a deal that doesn’t include the surrender of Israel in this war. Even on their last leg, with so much of their military, tunnels, and leadership destroyed, they continue to indulge in fantasies that they can win. As difficult as it is, Netanyahu is right to hold out on key positions and not give in to their demands. As of now, they demand that the IDF withdraw from Gaza completely, allow citizens (and terrorists) to move back into the north of Gaza unchecked, and be given back control of the Rafah crossing and Philadelphi corridor. Essentially, they are asking the IDF to surrender all their gains and put this war back to the start again. This wouldn’t even include the release of all the hostages, and Hamas demands top terrorists in prison to be exchanged as well. Can this even be called a “deal”?
At the DNC on Monday, President Biden referred to the pro-Palestinian protestors (a sanitized term for pro-Hamas and pro-terror protestors) and conceded that they “have a point.” What point is that? That a terrorist group can massacre innocent civilians, take them hostage, use more civilians as a human shield, and then blame the rescuing army? This two-faced, morally fractured outlook is exactly why we need new leadership who can lead our nation through this historic moment with a sound moral compass. More pressure must be put on Hamas because that has been the only successful thing in securing hostage releases. Time is running out for the hostages, and coddling these lunatics and their deranged American supporters is not diplomacy. It’s complete leadership failure.
