Hamas: Hostage guards in Gaza operating under new instructions

Al-Qassam Brigades said yesterday that since Israel’s massacre of some 270 Palestinians to rescue four hostages from Gaza in June, the group has been operating under new instructions on how to handle hostages should Israeli occupation forces approach their locations, Reuters reports.

The announcement comes days after the Israeli military recovered the bodies of six hostages from a tunnel in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, saying they had been shot dead by their captors as Israeli forces got close.

Abu Obaida, spokesperson for Al-Qassam Brigades, did not provide details on what the instructions were. He said his group holds Israel responsible for the hostages’ deaths.

The new instructions, Obaida said, were given to guards of hostages after Israel’s Nuserat massacre in June.

“Netanyahu’s insistence to free prisoners through military pressure, instead of sealing a deal, means they will be returned to their families in shrouds. Their families must choose whether they want them dead or alive,” he said.

Al-Qassam later published a pre-recorded video of one of the six dead hostages. It was unclear when the video was made.

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In it, Eden Yerushalmi calls on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to “do what is necessary to release” the hostages, adding that he had previously released 1,000 Palestinian detainees in return for soldier Gilad Shalit, while Hamas is asking for less than a quarter of that now for each prisoner of war it holds. She asked: “Am I worth less?”

“We are suffering,” she continues, while “the bombing here never stops and we are afraid for our lives. We are scared of dying here.”

Al-Qassam said a video of Ori Danino’s last words will be released later today.

Netanyahu said in a press conference yesterday that the hostages had been shot in the back of the head, and promised that Hamas would pay a heavy price.

Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri said Netanyahu’s accusations against Hamas were an attempt to escape responsibility for their deaths.

“Netanyahu killed the six prisoners and he is determined to kill the remaining ones. The Israelis should choose between Netanyahu or the deal,” Abu Zuhri said.

Similarly, Izzat Al-Risheq, a member of the Hamas political bureau, said yesterday: “The resistance’s hostages can immediately return to their families, the [one] stalling their return and responsible for their lives is Netanyahu.”

Widespread protests have been held in Israel since the weekend calling on Netanyahu to agree to a prisoner swap deal and bring the prisoners of war home. Netanyahu has stalled on a truce, saying any agreement must allow Israel to continue to bomb Gaza. Hamas insists a deal must bring an end to the war and allow Palestinians to return to their demolished homes.

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