On Oct. 7, Hamas perpetrated one of the
most horrendous acts of evil that civilization has seen since the
Holocaust. It is now trying to make a show of its supposed
humanity—which does not exist—by releasing kidnapped women and children.
This decision is purely for public
consumption and to please the media. In reality, Hamas is playing a
cruel game in an attempt to win the psychological war as well as the
battle on the ground.
In fact, the release only took place
because the IDF is enjoying significant success on the battlefield,
forcing Hamas to release more than two hostages at a time, as they were
doing before Israel began its ground operations. Clearly, then, Israel
must expand this operation to southern Gaza in order to force Hamas to
free the remaining hostages.
Even though Hamas grossly underestimated
Israel’s response to the terror group’s horrific massacre, it knew full
well the desperation and anguish they would cause by taking hostages.
They sought to inflict maximum pain on Israeli society. They also hoped
that the hostages would serve as bargaining chips they could use to
ensure their survival.
But Hamas is wrong. The release of 50
hostages will not stop Israel’s military advance. The fact that some 200
hostages remain in Hamas hands only gives Israel more incentive than ever to continue its operations.
It also keeps U.S. President Joe Biden and
Secretary of State Antony Blinken in the fight. If Hamas released all
the hostages, it is highly unlikely that Biden would agree to Israeli
operations in southern Gaza. As a result, the hostage crisis has taken
on a whole new dimension. In the end, the crisis will determine how long
the Biden administration will back Israel’s military operations.
Of course, Biden will try to delay Israeli
operations in southern Gaza by claiming that he is using diplomacy to
get the remaining hostages out. This is the same reasoning that
prevented Israel from launching a ground invasion for three weeks.
Israel could have caught Hamas on the run had it started ground
operations sooner.
Israel cannot make this mistake a second
time. The best hope for the hostages is for Israel to completely defeat
and destroy Hamas. Biden has to let the IDF do its job, because when
Israel wins, America wins. Thankfully, there are already signs that
Hamas’s cruel game is backfiring.
Israel must continue its ground invasion.
It is working. If anything will secure the release of all the hostages,
it is victory. I look forward to that day.
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