RSS
Hamas Wants to Look Strong; But Appearances Can Be Deceiving
US-Israeli Sagui Dekel-Chen and Russian-Israeli Sasha (Alexander) Troufanov, hostages held in Gaza since the deadly October 7, 2023 attack, are escorted by Palestinian Hamas terrorists and Islamic Jihad terrorists as part of a ceasefire and a hostages-prisoners swap deal between Hamas and Israel in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, February 15, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ramadan Abed
If you’re like me and following each hostage release in Gaza, it’s hard not to be taken aback by Hamas’ elaborate propaganda spectacles.
In late January, when Hamas released three female hostages, Romi Gonen, Doron Steinbrecher, and Emily Damari, who had been imprisoned for nearly 500 days, they forcibly paraded each hostage on stage, and gave them “gift bags,” framed certificates, and “prisoner release forms,” in a twisted act of propaganda. Crowds of jeering men and women gathered en masse to humiliate each woman as they were released.
Earlier this month, Hamas released three male Israeli hostages, Eli Sharabi, Ohad Ben Ami, and and Or Levy, frail and emaciated (invoking memories of the Holocaust), forcing them to recite pre-written lines on stage while donning Palestinian flags and Hamas logos in a sick spectacle. This Saturday, it happened again. Hamas released three more hostages, Dekel-Chen, Sasha Troufanov, and Iair Horn, who were forced to hold up hourglasses on stage with the inscription “time is running out.”
The purpose of these elaborate spectacles is clear. Hamas is trying to send the message to the world that it is still in control, that it has not been defeated, and that it still poses an existential threat to the State of Israel. Each of these shocking displays of psychological warfare is intended to deeply disturb the viewer and paint a picture of Hamas’ supposed victory and sustained capabilities in the Gaza Strip.
When fighting, Hamas fighters don Adidas tracksuits. Whenever a ceasefire is announced, Hamas fighters scurry out of tunnels and exchange their civilian clothing for military uniforms. And when there’s a camera on them, they’re suddenly sporting full Hamas garb and claiming victory over Israel. The world must understand, however, that Hamas’s attempted shows of force are nothing but smoke and mirrors.
In the last 500 days of fighting, the IDF has made significant progress toward weakening Hamas and other Iran-backed proxy terror groups.
Hamas has been largely isolated for the moment, and had many of its battalions destroyed. Today, the organization still operates as a ragtag insurgent group, hiding in tunnels and conducting guerrilla warfare attacks, but lacks real capabilities to inflict damage on the State of Israel. That could change in the future, but as of now, Hamas is much less powerful than it was on October 6, 2023.
In addition, Iran’s other proxy-terror groups have been weakened. Hezbollah has been eviscerated. Yemen’s Houthis have been bombarded by American, Israeli, and British airstrikes, and the Iranian regime itself is in a moment of unprecedented weakness. Hamas’ only remaining leverage is the fact that it is brutally holding dozens of hostages in underground tunnels.
Hamas’ theatrics are provocative and jarring, but they are not representative of the group’s true capabilities. Hamas has not achieved victory over Israel. Once the terror group has released every hostage they are holding, they will have nothing left to bargain with.
The moderate Arab nations have signaled a willingness to advance a post-war Gaza that sidelines Hamas in favor of moderate governance, while US President Donald Trump pushes a far-fetched plan for the US to “own” Gaza. Now is the time for Israel to focus on ensuring the safe release of every last hostage from Gaza. After they’re free, the focus must shift to ensuring Hamas retains no control over Gaza whatsoever post-war, ensuring a better future for both Israelis and Palestinians who are willing to reject terrorism and focus on a better life for their children and community.
Nathaniel Miller is a Tulane University student, where he is the president of the Tulane Israel Public Affairs Committee, and is a CAMERA fellow.
The post Hamas Wants to Look Strong; But Appearances Can Be Deceiving first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
RSS
After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
RSS
Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
RSS
Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.