Posted on 01/29/2024 2:32:05 PM PST by Uncle Miltie
BOMBS AWAY!
I doubt many hostages are alive. Has any proof been offered?
Hamas is doing a great job of being so extreme that even those in the West who want to cave in can’t do it.
The hostages are already dead, IMO.
People tend to think of organizations as having one leader or a committee with decision making power. I think Hamas is an umbrella name and it represents a distributed network with no overall command authority. The religion allows anyone who feels he’s Hollier than thou to make any decision he feels promotes the religion. This is why the self-appointed religious police killed the Woman in Iran who they felt wasn’t wearing her hajib correctly. I’m sure the actual government would really have preferred that it hadn’t happened as it caused riots. But there was really nothing they could do about it. Same sort of thing here. The Hamas “leader” is really only the leader of people who follow him. There might be fifty “leaders” who may or may not follow him and their subordination is only due to how much the leader is paying them or supplying them with material.
Good description of the nutbar world of Islamic terrorism!
Hamas killed U.S. citizens. So where is the U.S. extradition demand to their host Qatar?
Good for them
They made up their minds to die, then
Many are, yes
Why is this even a topic of discussion for Israel?
I agree. Israel needs to pull completely out.
Then, totally flatten that polluted land.
My question exactly.
Regrettably, those hostages must be written off as dead, and every living thing in Gaza killed.
Regrettably, those hostages must be written off as dead, and every living thing in Gaza killed.
so, Hamas says it’ll only accept a full IDF pullout?
Ok, Bibi, keep on, well, you know...
They have hostages so they can act like bank robbers.
Big and powerful until they aren’t.
Former FReeper Wretchard talked about the consequences of having a distributed command structure that nobody can really get a binding peace agreement from.
Spoiler: there really is no solution other than complete extermination.
https://belmontclub.blogspot.com/2003/09/three-conjectures-pew-poll-finds-40-of.html?m=1
So Hamass is getting their hamass’ kicked, and they think they’re in the driver’s seat to dictate terms? Time to level the rest and execute any males of military age so they don’t attack again. Turn the tunnels into a water park.
[snip] The terror group issued a statement alongside a smaller terror group the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, insisting Israel must halt its "aggression" and pull out of Gaza before any exchange deal takes place... "We are talking first of all about a complete and comprehensive ceasefire, and not a temporary truce," Taher al-Nunu told AFP, saying that once the fighting stops, "the rest of the details can be discussed" including a hostage release. [/snip]
IOW, once Hamas has everything it wants, it'll never release the hostages. Israel should continue to kill the Koranimals by the bushel and let the Saudis know that unless they start to accept refugees from Gaza, they'll be considered an enemy combatant, in line with the fact that the KSA has no treaty with or formal recognition of Israel.
[snip] Earlier, the Qatari prime minister said that he believed Hamas had "moved" from its demand for a complete ceasefire as a condition, something that has been outright rejected by Israel. [/snip]
About the only thing Qatar brings to the table is the table.
[snip] "We are in a much better place than we were a few weeks ago," Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said at the Atlantic Council in Washington, DC.
"Yesterday, good progress was made to get things back in shape and at least to lay a foundation for the way forward," Al Thani added, saying the proposal would be relayed to Hamas.
He said that an agreement might lead to a permanent ceasefire "in the future."
Al Thani demurred when asked about Netanyahu's critical comments last week about Qatari mediation being "problematic," saying only that he does not expect the prime minister to thank Doha. [/snip]
Thank Doha for what, the zero progress?
[snip] The Prime Minister's Office issued a statement that did not deny that Israel had agreed to a framework for a hostage release, but did say that "the reports about a deal are incorrect and include [ostensible] conditions that are not acceptable to Israel." [/snip]
IOW, there was no deal, nor was there intended to be one.
[snip] At a press briefing, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he believed "the proposal is a strong one and a compelling one... but Hamas will have to make its own decisions." [/snip]
Hamas made their decision and have stuck to it for decades now. Hamas has to be annihilated.
[snip] Israel also sent Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar as well as IDF hostage envoy Nitzan Alon to the summit. [/snip]
...
[snip] Kirby said it is put to him "all the time" that Israel "is ignoring us, that they're not listening to us. Frankly the facts just don't bear that out." [/snip]
That sounds very much like a baldfaced lie, intended to put Israel in a bad light.
They may be able to negotiate an end to hostilities if Hamas agrees to full and unconditional surrender, identify all their weapons caches and booby traps, and go to Israeli prison.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.