A member of Israel’s war cabinet has said the country will launch its threatened ground offensive against Rafah, the last place of relative safety in Gaza, if Hamas does not release its remaining Israeli hostages by the beginning of the holy Muslim month of Ramadan in just under three weeks.
“The world must know, and Hamas leaders must know – if by Ramadan our hostages are not home, the fighting will continue everywhere, including the Rafah area,” Benny Gantz, a retired Israel Defense Forces (IDF) chief of staff, told a conference of American Jewish leaders in Jerusalem on Sunday.
As Israeli forces have expanded ground operations steadily southwards in their war against Hamas over the past four months, Rafah – situated on the border with Egypt, and before the conflict home to about 280,000 people – has become the last refuge for more than half of the strip’s population of 2.3 million.
Their not very good bargaining points as Israel has established it couldn’t care any less about them. Hell the attacks have killed at least a couple of em. At this point releasing them is the only end I can see here, Israel primary motivation/excuse for the attack is to free/kill the hostages and deter further incursions by hamas to take hostages. If they don’t have any hostages the argument for an attack is weaker, not that that’ll deter the folks in charge.