Shalom all,

How should we describe the behavior of the Hamas terrorists to the hostages? In addition to the story told by the woman to her doctor yesterday, today we have stories about some young hostages who were released, as well as of a family of four that remains in Hamas captivity.

According to an article of Sivan Hilaie appearing in Ynetnews :

12-year-old Eitan, “experienced horrors” at the hands of the Hamas terrorists;

They beat him;

They forced him to watch the entire video of the massacre of Ocrtober 7th;

They threatened him and the other children with a gun whenever a child cried;

They put him in isolation in a closed room for 16 days, before transferring him about a month ago to a group of people from Kibbutz Nir Oz, which made it easier for him;

Eitan returned thinner and not smiling. His grandmother added: “Eitan is a “very reserved” child…I believe it will take him time, we have a lot of work to do with him to get him back to a state where he can speak.” 

Emily is 9-years-old and was also released from Hamas captivity this week. Her father reported:

Emily had lost a lot of weight; she was so hungry, but got used to even the most basic meals like a slice of bread with a little olive oil;

She was very pale;

She only whispers when she speaks, because the Hamas terrorists had forced her to do so;

The children were forbidden to make noise;

They passed the time drawing a little and playing with cards;

Emily returned with a head full of lice;

She had no idea what happened on October 7th and thought everyone was either killed or kidnapped;

When asked how long she thought she was held hostage, she answered, “a year”;

Her father, who was also released by Hamas this week, said that:

“The door opened and she ran to me, it was beautiful, just as I imagined it. I hugged her tightly, and only after she took a step back I looked at her face and noticed that it was chiseled, like mine. Before the captivity, Emily’s face was that of a young girl.”

She learned after he release that her mother was killed by the terrorists on October 7th; 

Her father added: “Last night she cried until her face was red, she couldn’t stop…She got under the covers, covered herself and cried quietly.”

She didn’t know what happened to her father when she was being held by Hamas and when they met, she whispered to him: “I thought you were kidnapped.”

Experts from the Ministry of Health reported that released hostages detailed hunger and inadequate nutrition. One doctor indicated that the released hostages said that they received half a slice of bread twice a day. On the whole, “they describe conditions of confinement and anxiety.”

A story was published in Hebrew today about Noam, 16, and his sister Alma, 13, who were released during the second hostage/prisoner exchange. But, their parents did not welcome them upon their return. Only after their return they learned that their mother was killed during the massacre of October 7th. That was a very traumatic moment for them. They didn’t know until their return that their father was also taken hostage and continues to be held by Hamas. Their uncle was interviewed by the Briitish “Guardian” and reported that his niece and nephew were kept in a separate room with another girl. He said that their time in captivity was “terrible” and that “other things happened that made the experience difficult, very difficult”, but asked not to expand on those difficulties in order not to hurt the harm the emotions of family members whose loved ones are still being held hostage.

We can only imagine what “difficulties” the uncle of Noam and Alma was referring to. If this is how Hamas related to children, what should we expect to hear regarding their treatment of adults?

The stories of the hostages while in captivity are only beginning to be told. Some are very difficult and will not be revealed publicly.

The Fifth Hostage/Prisoner Exchange: Israel and Hamas overcame allegations of breach of the hostage/prisoner exchange deal and concluded the fifth round of release of the hostages, in exchange for another day of ceasefire and release of “Palestinian” prisoners. Ten more Israeli hostages were released by Hamas this evening – 9 women, ranging in age from 36 to 84, along with 1 teenage girl. The husbands of three of the women are still being held hostage, while the husband of a fourth woman was murdered in the massacre. Those released this evening are being sent for examination to three different hospitals.

As of now, the terrorists still have 155 hostages in the Gaza Strip, including 9 teenagers and children.

There was widespread hope that the Bibas family of four who were taken hostage, father, mother, 4-year-old and 10-month-old, would be released today. Hundreds of people gathered in “Hostage Square” in Tel Aviv, in a demonstration in support of the family, after learning that they would not be released today.

The sister of the Yarden Bibas, the father, stated: “For 53 days they have been held captive by Hamas in Gaza, we do not know if 10-month-old Kfir and Ariel are with their parents. Who hugs them when they cry? We do not know if they have food, if they shower them. We know where they are – Hamas kidnapped them and must return them immediately. The responsibility for their health lies directly with Hamas. Hamas – who are your enemies? Kidnapping children, what are your values? Is this acceptable according to Islam?”

The IDF Spokesman stated this evening that the responsibility for the welfare of the Bibas family lies solely on Hamas.

There is no reasoning with evil.

Netanyahu does an about-face to accommodate Qatar: Last week, P.M. Netanyahu said that he gave instructions to the Israeli Mossad to pursue Hamas terrorists “wherever they are”. Defense Minister, Yoav Gallant, added: “They are living on borrowed time…The struggle is worldwide: From gunmen in the field to those who are enjoying luxury jets while their emissaries are acting against women and children — they are destined to die.”

Two days ago, an article in World Israel News referrred to a report by “Le Figaro” that Netanyahu assured Qatar that Israel would not carry out targated killings of Hamas leaders residing that country. This was included in the hostage release deal, as a precondition to Qatar acting as mediator in the hostage negotiations.

Qatar provided financial backing for many, if not most, of the activities of Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Was Qatar’s involvement so critical to the hostage/prisoner exchange/ceasefire that Netanyahu had to agree not to eliminate senior leaders of Hamas presently on Qatari soil? Qatar would be embarrassed if those leaders were killed while they enjoy the protection of the government. But, after making a bold, public statement that all of the leaders of Hamas are “dead men walking”, Netanyahu’s commitment not to go after them while they are in Qatar, embarrassed not only himself, and Defense Minister Gallant, but the Mossad, as well. Maybe if his assertion was followed through and the Hamas leadership was eliminated, there wouldn’t have been any need for Qatari-brokered negotiations.

If that wasn’t enough, according to a recent report, P.M. Netanyahu rejected, on six separate occasions, “detailed and actionable” plans, submitted by Israel’s Security Service, to assassinate Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar, the mastermind behind the October 7th massacres . Netanyahu denies the report.

Avigdor Liberman, the head of the Yisrael Beytenu Party and former defense minister said:

“Netanyahu can continue to deny it as much as he wants. He’s the one who granted immunity to Yahya and the leaders of Hamas, preventing any attempts to neutralize them…I’m stating this not as mere speculation but as someone with personal knowledge of the matter.”

This is no small matter and will most likely develop into a political explosion, adding to the legal woes that Netanyahu is still dealing with. This situation needs to be followed. The repercussions of such repeated rejections to eliminate the leader of Hamas, if proven to be true, will be the undoing of Netanyahu’s leadership.

The Bible Stopped A Bullet: One of the soldiers serving in Gaza was saved from a Hamas bullet, by the pocket Book of Psalms that he was carrying in his pocket. The bullet hit the Psalms and became imbedded in it, saving the life of the soldier. Truly, “The LORD’s word is flawless; he shields all who take refuge in him.” (Psalm 18:30)

Bless, be blessed and be a blessing.

Marvin