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By Arlene Bridges Samuels

On September 1, Israel celebrated in a wave of joy. The Israel Defense Forces had found the Bedouin-Muslim Israeli hostage Farhan al-Qadi alive in a tunnel. Yet after his rescue, countrywide joy was quickly extinguished by another unspeakable horror that swept through Israel with the force of a lightning bolt. The IDF found the bodies of six murdered hostages in a tunnel below Rafah—less than a mile away from the tunnel where they had rescued al-Qadi. In an act of unimaginable cruelty, terrorists had executed the hostages shortly before soldiers reached them.

The world must understand the beastly nature of these murderers. In the words of Hamas spokesman Abu Obaida: “The instructions issued to the guards are clear on what to do if the occupying army comes close to a site of detention.” Let this demonic Hamas policy sink in: They murdered six hostages because the IDF troops came too close to where they were keeping them imprisoned.

Can you imagine the devastation the brave soldiers must have experienced when they found the bodies of these six souls and reverently carried their bodies into their homeland? The act of releasing the six hostages—and all hostages—could have been an eloquent Hamas statement to the world for a ceasefire and true peace. But such a thing is not in their DNA. Murdering Jews, all Jews, non-Jewish citizens, and Palestinians is Hamas’s agenda.

It gets worse. Hamas executed these six people by shooting them multiple times at close range. After examining the hostages’ bullet-ridden bodies, forensic experts reported that they were murdered likely on August 29 or 30 after surviving 11 months in captivity. As you read their names, pray for their families and the entire nation since every citizen considers them as sons and daughters: Israeli-American citizen Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23, and Israeli citizens Carmel Gat, 40, Eden Yerushalmi, 24, Alexander Lubnov, 32, Almog Sarusi, 27, and Ori Danino, 25.

The New York Times described the six slain as “killed.” CNN said Israeli-American hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin “died.” Mainstream media, take note! Murdered and executed are the correct verbs here!

The victims’ grief-stricken families are holding funerals all over Israel. Hundreds of people line the streets and thousands attend funerals. Israeli flags draped over caskets are wet with tears. The wailing of many mothers fills the air. A Rabbi declares, “The whole of Israel is crying today.” A funeral attendee commented at Eden Yerushalmi’s funeral, “I never met her, but she’s family.”

Another phrase is often heard, “At least they are home now.” Profound words. They have been true for thousands of years. The Jewish hostages are now home in their ancestral homeland.

Over the centuries, the Jewish community has existed in joy and in horror. When troops found Farhan al-Qadi in a Rafah tunnel on August 27, the jubilation had no boundary. Israel, regularly accused of apartheid against its non-Jewish population, celebrated in every community—the Jewish majority as well as minority communities of Christians, Arabs, and Druze. The 52-year-old security guard kidnapped from a business near Gaza spent more than 10 months in Hamas tunnels. This father of 11 is a citizen, a Bedouin-Muslim Israeli.

Weak, malnourished, and united with his family in the hospital, Farhan al-Qadi talked about living in almost total darkness. One hostage was captive for two months and died next to him. Farhan was shot in the leg when kidnapped, but Hamas operated on him without anesthesia. He commented, “We must remember that there are other people inside [the tunnels].” He also explained that being a native Arabic speaker did not help him. Al-Qadi was one of six Bedouins kidnapped on October 7, according to the Prime Minister’s office. Bedouins hold Israeli citizenship and have extensive familial ties that stretch into Gaza.

The IDF is making tremendous progress in Gaza, especially by securing the Philadelphi Corridor between Israel and Egypt. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu makes it clear that if the IDF were to leave Philadelphi, Hamas would be able to rearm, revive, and repeat October 7. Netanyahu is right. He knows that the death cult of crazed Hamas cowardice continues.

However, with Yahya Sinwar—the Gaza-based architect of evil—in charge no hostage or ceasefire deal is possible. Of the terror trio of Hamas “leaders,” he is the only one left after the IDF eliminated Ismail Haniyeh and Mohammed Deif in July. Now, Sinwar is Israel’s most wanted terrorist. An IDF spokesman says he is “a dead man walking.” The IDF’s latest assessments show that 6,000 of Sinwar’s murderous thugs breached the Holy Land on October 7, 2023—nearly double the number initially reported—and that many of these were elite forces.

Sinwar now hides out in tunnels—some 15 stories deep. For protection, he encircles himself with hostages handcuffed together. Taking hostages as human shields is a war crime under international law. Yet it is Hamas’s habitual, cowardly custom to frequently hide behind Palestinian civilians and hostages. Unfortunately, much of the world does not care about Hamas’s war crimes and has adopted an unthinkable terror mindset by wondering why Israel must defeat unconcealed aggression.

Sinwar has fulfilled the meaning of his last name. Sin and War—a thoroughly appropriate name for murderous sin and the immoral war that has shockingly circled the globe with Jew hatred, lawlessness, and anti-Israel propaganda.

The IDF has collected intelligence indicating tunnels where they could eliminate the notoriously elusive Sinwar, yet attacks were never authorized due to the hostages’ dangerous proximity to him. When he ventures outside, he is dressed as a woman.

A glance into Sinwar’s mindset is revealing. In 1989, when he was 27 years old, Israel imprisoned Sinwar for kidnapping and murdering two IDF soldiers and four Palestinians he deemed to be collaborators with Israel. He got four life sentences plus 25 years. Then, in the controversial 2011 prisoner exchange negotiation, the “Shalit deal,” Hamas freed Gilad Shalit, an IDF soldier. Israel agreed to release more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners. Sinwar—who had served just 22 years and was never again supposed to see the light of day—was among them.

His humane treatment in an Israeli prison is a picture of Israel’s humanity: During Sinwar’s 23-year imprisonment, he was diagnosed with a life-threatening brain tumor. A Jewish doctor successfully operated on him, saving his life. However, the Jewish doctor’s mercy only turned into more hatred inside Sinwar’s brain. Mercy mattered not.

Meanwhile the IDF continues its policy to protect Palestinian Gazan civilians as best as possible, although it means much higher risk for soldiers. Pray for IDF soldiers who are operating in tunnels rigged with Hamas explosives. They press in amid one of the most complex wars in history, both above ground and in the underground city dubbed “Gaza Metro”—a product of Sinwar’s upgraded tunnel system that’s big enough for trucks, cars, and weapons smuggling. The IDF reports that Hamas is still holding 101 hostages captive—97 abducted on October 7 and four hostages who had been abducted previously.

As we read about Sinwar, righteous anger can arise, and depression can deepen. In the meantime, we stand with Israel and the Jewish community worldwide in prayer and help. Pray that the world will understand the biblical contrast between good and evil.

Our CBN Israel team invites you to join with us reading Psalm 37:1-2, a reminder from the God of the Universe: Do not fret because of those who are evil or be envious of those who do wrong; for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away.

Prayer points:

• Pray for the Israeli families who have lost their innocent sons and daughters.
• Pray for the soldiers who with broken hearts carried their bodies home.
• Pray for the entire nation during another intense season of mourning.
• Pray with thankfulness for Farhan al-Qadi’s rescue.
• Pray for IDF members involved in complex hostage rescue efforts.
• Pray for Prime Minister Netanyahu leading under internal and external pressures. 

Arlene Bridges Samuels is the weekly feature columnist for CBN Israel since 2020. Working on the staff of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) as their SE Regional Outreach Director for nine years, International Christian Embassy Jerusalem USA engaged her as the Leadership Outreach Director part-time for their project American Christian Leaders for Israel. Arlene is an author at The Blogs-Times of Israel, is published at AllIsrael.com and The Jerusalem Connection, and has traveled to Israel since 1990. By invitation, she attends Israel’s Government Press Office Christian Media Summits as part of Christian media worldwide.  In 2024, Arlene and her husband Paul co-authored Mental Health Meltdown: Illuminating the Voices of Bipolar and Other Mental Illnesses. www.TheMentalHealthMeltdown.com.