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Let's say Hamas returned the hostages. What would happen next? What makes that the "winning move?" My guess is that Netanyahu would say that the war can't end

Let's say Hamas returned the hostages. What would happen next? What makes that the "winning move?" My guess is that Netanyahu would say that the war can't end until "all the terrorists are dead" (impossible), and the Palestinians have given up the one bit of leverage that they have.

JumpCrisscross 1y ago
> Let's say Hamas returned the hostages. What would happen next? The international terms of the debate would change. The domestic political situation in Israel would change. Netanyahu’s hand would be significantly weakened by losing hostages as a justification to his electorate and even the IDF. Hamas, however, would face pointed questions over why it didn’t recognise that the hostages were a liability sooner (I frankly question if they were ever an asset at all—Sinwar’s purpose, to draw in Iran, was a dud). If you want to get conspiratorial, consider that the one red line Netanyahu has respected is Hamas’ leadership’s security in Doha.