According to the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, the hostages, who were taken from Khan Younis in southern Gaza, appear to have died of suffocation in the tunnel where they were being held.
The newspaper claimed that the incident occurred about six months ago during an Israeli military attack in Khan Younis by the 98th Division.
The report claimed that the army did not target the tunnel directly where the hostages were held but rather hit a Hamas target nearby, resulting in a fire and the subsequent release of lethal carbon dioxide gas inside the tunnel.
Several Hamas fighters were found dead alongside the Israeli hostages, armed with Kalashnikov rifles and showing no signs of injury, it said.
I don’t know that Israel closed all diplomatic options. There were plenty of offers on the table that Hamas / PLO walked away from.
I don’t think Israel are good guys and they are effective opportunists with the land grabs / settlements. I also don’t think Hamas cares one bit about the Palestinian people either. I feel like they always seem to get carte blanche to act with impunity because the Palestinians are oppressed --which, don’t get me wrong, they absolutely are. It just seems we always single out one party, but to me they are both culpable of exploiting the suffering of the Palestinians. Just my opinion.
Your opinion is factually wrong. The Palestinian people have no power or real capabilities to fight back or to be self controlled/governed. Don’t forget that Hamas is partly funded and supported by the IDF. Yes literally. Acting as if the Palestinians people have any hand in their own situation is laughable at best. The zionest Isrealies don’t want anything but the extermination of all Palestinians. How do you negotiate with that? Hamas is a gaint bag of dicks and have caused more harm than good. But Palestinians only have terrorism as a option because the international community has turned their backs on them and passive disobedience (MLK type protests) don’t work when you’re oppressor wants your death. It’s like calling Native Americans a terrorist during the trail of tears.
We agree a lot more than you think. I’m not saying the Palestinians don’t feel justified in fighting. Hamas still enjoys broad support among Palestinians.
The point where we diverge I think is that it goes both ways. The Palestinians never accepted the establishment of a Jewish state, even before the Peele commission even happened. The issue as I see it, that sentiment never wavered even though the context has changed drastically.
Not that any of that justifies the conduct of the IDF in this current conflict. We agree - all I’m saying it’s not so simple as an occupying force creating an apartheid condition.
Let me ask you something… What other options do the Palestinian people have other than Hamas? And no occupied people have ever accepted the establishment of an occupying force. The Palestinian people have no obligation to accept the establishment of Israel. Just as the Native Americans never accepted USA. All we can do now as an demand the zionest stop their encroachment and return to the post ww2 boarders. The UN needs demilitarize both sides and protect both sides from each other and outside forces.
That’s part of the crux. Both the Palestinians and the Israelis need better leadership.
Unfortunately, we are never returning to the 68 borders. If I had the power to magically make it happen, I would do it in a snap. But the reality is that it’s never happening. Each side has to concede something to move forward. Palestinians need to accept the Jewish state at this point --whether it’s fair or not. 10 million Israelis are not going to just up and leave as much as we wish that could happen. Israelis need to demolish illegal settlements and restore occupied territories even if they are not going to concede the 68 borders.
I don’t really know what the best answer is but the onus is on both parties. I agree Israel has the upper hand militarily, but Israel does not want another 100 years of suicide bombers either. There has to be a path forward.