Israel-Hamas Thread II

A new UN report debunks one of the most convenient narratives about Gaza: Hamas is not only a terrorist organization targeting Israel, but also a brutal repressive apparatus targeting "Palestinians". According to the UN Human Rights Office, hundreds of cases of extrajudicial punishment were documented between Aug 2024 and Jan 2026. These included public executions, shooting people in the legs, breaking bones with metal rods or cement blocks, and severe mistreatment.

The UN commission recorded 249 cases, including 108 deaths. In nearly a quarter of the cases, forces affiliated with Hamas or police units are said to have been involved; other cases were attributed to other armed groups. The victims were mostly accused of collaborating with Israel, stealing humanitarian aid, drug trafficking, or having ties to internal "Palestinian" rivals. According to the report, due process, independent courts, or a fair defense played no discernible role.

The documented public executions are particularly shocking. Among other things, the UN cites the shooting of three bound men in front of Shifa Hospital in Sep 2025, as well as another execution in Oct, in which eight men were reportedly dragged to a square in Gaza City and shot. The Commission classifies such acts as murder, a violation of international humanitarian law, and war crimes.

The report thus confirms what Israel has been emphasizing for years: Gaza is not merely a theater of war against Israel. Gaza is also an area where Hamas rules through violence, fear, and public humiliation. Anyone who opposes it, who is considered a traitor, or who is associated with a rival group can become a target themselves. Children are also said to have been subjected to public punishments.

Politically, the report is particularly important because it comes from within the UN system itself. Precisely those international voices that immediately seize upon UN criticism of Israel must now also take these findings seriously. Those who loudly lament "Palestinian" suffering only when Israel can be held responsible are not acting in accordance with human rights, but selectively. A "Palestinian" who is tortured or shot by Hamas forces is no less a victim simply because Israel is not the perpetrator.

Hamas has controlled Gaza since 2007, after it forcibly ousted the PA. Since then, it has ruled not as a normal political force, but as an armed terrorist regime. The massacre of Oct 7, 2023, revealed its violence toward the outside world. The new UN report reveals its violence against its own people. The two go hand in hand: An organization that massacres Israeli families, abducts hostages, and uses civilians as human shields does not treat its own population as free citizens either.

The report also mentions that, according to witness accounts, punishments are said to have taken place on hospital grounds, including at the Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Yunis. Israel has long accused Hamas of misusing civilian sites such as hospitals, schools, and mosques for military or operational purposes. The UN report does not replace a full military assessment of individual facilities, but it demonstrates once again how deeply armed structures have penetrated Gaza’s civilian spaces.

Anyone who talks about Gaza while ignoring Hamas is misrepresenting reality. The people of Gaza suffer not only from war, destruction, and hardship. They also suffer under a terrorist organization that controls them, intimidates them, and publicly punishes them when necessary.

The report is therefore a warning to the media, politicians, and activists: "Palestinian" lives must not only matter when they can be used against Israel. Anyone who truly wants to speak for the people of Gaza must call Hamas out by name. There can be no future for Gaza as long as this organization continues to control police forces, local administration, aid supplies, or security structures.

The liberation of Gaza from Hamas is therefore not merely an Israeli security interest. It is also a "Palestinian" necessity. As long as Hamas rules, Gaza remains a place of fear. Not only because of the war. But because of the men who, in the name of Hamas, judge, beat, maim, and kill.

Talks on Gaza are continuing, but hopes for a genuine breakthrough are fading. According to a report in The Times of Israel, Hamas representatives took part in talks in Cairo this week regarding a possible disarmament. However, despite some progress, mediators from Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey see little chance of reaching a comprehensive agreement before the Israeli election this fall. The reason is not only Hamas, which refuses to surrender its weapons. It is also the Israeli election campaign, which is leaving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with less and less room to maneuver regarding a withdrawal from Gaza.

The framework for the talks is the 20-point plan presented by US President Donald Trump to end the Gaza war. Implementation rests with the US-led Board of Peace, whose Gaza envoy, Nickolay Mladenov, has made it clear on several occasions in recent months that the disarmament of Hamas is to be the core of the second phase. Without this disarmament, the plan states that there can be no reconstruction and no new order in Gaza. The entire process hinges precisely on this.

For months, Hamas has been trying to reverse the order of the phases. It argues that Israel itself has failed to fulfill its obligations under the first phase: providing more humanitarian aid, withdrawing to agreed-upon lines, opening key border crossings, and ending attacks. Therefore, it cannot be expected to implement the second phase just yet. Mladenov counters that Israel can only be persuaded to take further steps if Hamas seriously commits to disarmament. That is the central sticking point: Hamas demands concessions first. Israel demands disarmament. The mediators are trying to squeeze both into a system of reciprocal steps.

According to the report, the Board of Peace’s 15-point disarmament plan envisions a step-by-step process. Where Hamas surrenders its weapons, Israel is to withdraw. This principle of reciprocity sounds diplomatically sound, but in reality it is highly risky. Israel is supposed to evacuate areas while having to trust that a terrorist organization will not simply hide, relocate, or transfer its weapons to other armed groups. Hamas is supposed to hand over weapons while fearing that it will be weakened afterward by rivals or Israel. This is precisely why the process is barely moving forward.

The establishment of a new police force for Gaza is particularly contentious. The Board of Peace wants to train forces to replace Hamas in maintaining internal security. To this end, recruits are to leave Gaza and undergo training in Egypt. The mediators want Israel to commit to allowing these forces to return afterward. Israel is said to have initially signaled its willingness to do so, but is now linking progress more strongly to Hamas’s prior approval of the disarmament plan. The entry of the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, a body of "Palestinian" technocrats intended to take over the administration, also remains controversial.

This highlights the full difficulty of any post-war order in Gaza. Who will provide security if Hamas is disarmed? Who will guarantee that new police forces are not infiltrated? Who will protect technocrats from Hamas, Islamic Jihad, or rival clans? And who will guarantee Israel that a new administration will not merely serve as a civilian cover for old terrorist structures? These questions are not merely bureaucratic. They determine whether Gaza will truly be different after the war or whether Hamas is merely buying time.

A US official rejected the claim that Israel is the main obstacle. Netanyahu has agreed to extended ceasefires on several occasions in recent months to give Hamas time to respond to proposals. However, the terrorist organization has hesitated and dragged its feet. That, too, is part of the truth. Hamas has ruled Gaza by force since 2007; it started the war with the massacre on Oct 7; it clings to its weapons and has shown no credible interest in accepting Israel as a sovereign Jewish state. A plan that hinges on its voluntary disarmament is therefore built on shaky ground from the start.

Nevertheless, mediators and the US side apparently still believe that Hamas can be pressured into accepting a disarmament plan. To this end, the mediators are attempting to involve other armed Palestinian groups as well. They are expected to accept that Hamas makes a decision and agree not to take action against Hamas members if they make concessions regarding their weapons. This logic alone shows how unstable the situation is: a terrorist organization needs protection from other armed groups in order to even consider disarmament.

For Israel, the standard is clear: Gaza must not be allowed to become a terrorist base again. Every new administration, every police force, every reconstruction effort, and every withdrawal must serve this goal. Hamas must not appear to be disarmed while hiding weapons. It must not disappear politically while its people control local structures. And it must not return through aid organizations, the police, clans, or shadow networks. It is precisely this concern that explains Israel’s tough stance, even if it is often portrayed internationally as an obstacle to the peace process.

The coming months will therefore be decisive. If Hamas does not disarm, the pressure must be ramped up. If reconstruction begins, it must not serve to stabilize Hamas. And if the US wants to lead the process, it must do more than simply urge both sides to engage in talks. It must establish guarantees that provide Israel with security and block Hamas’s path back to armed conflict.

Until then, Gaza remains in the most dangerous of all situations: not war as before, not peace, not a genuine post-war order. It is precisely in such liminal spaces that terrorist organizations thrive.

It has become increasingly clear to everyone dealing with Hamas that the IDF is the only army willing and able to disarm and destroy them. It was just about to do so when Trump’s ceasefire plan stopped it. It was recently reported that he, his peace board, and Israel essentially agree that the IDF must have the opportunity to finish the job. If this report is true, it is a wonderful answer to prayer.

Almighty G-d, may Your divine will prevail regarding Gaza (Ps 33:10-11; Prov 21:30).

Lord G-d, if the war with Hamas is not won until Israel commits to recapturing all of Gaza, then work on the new government team and the majority of Israelis so that they agree to do exactly that (Neh 2:20).

G-d of Jacob, fulfill Malachi 1:4, and whatever Esau/Edom (the spiritual roots of Islam) attempts to build in Gaza, or anywhere else in Your land, rise up and bring it down (Isa 34:5; 63:1–6).

Almighty G-d, let the pride of Hamas lead them to destruction (2 Sam 22:28b; Prov 16:18).

Thank You, Lord, that the IDF is destroying the terror tunnels in the area of Gaza they now control (more than 60%), finding weapons caches, and neutralizing Hamas terrorists (Job 12:22; Ps 95:4; 139:12).

Commander of the heavenly hosts, strengthen Your protection over the IDF soldiers in Gaza against attacks, booby traps, kidnapping attempts, accidents, and friendly fire (Ps 32:7; 121:4).

Lord, we rejoice that tens of thousands of "Palestinians" have already left Gaza, and we ask that its gates remain wide open for the rest (Isa 60:12; Jer 12:17).

Abba, let Iran’s financial crisis severely damage the finances of Hamas and Islamic Jihad (Prov 11:4a).

King Jesus, let Your light shine through the believers in Gaza, so that many Muslims may be drawn to You (Mt 5:16).

Benaiah468 said:

It has become increasingly clear to everyone dealing with Hamas that the IDF is the only army willing and able to disarm and destroy them. It was just about to do so when Trump’s ceasefire plan stopped it. It was recently reported that he, his peace board, and Israel essentially agree that the IDF must have the opportunity to finish the job. If this report is true, it is a wonderful answer to prayer.

Almighty G-d, may Your divine will prevail regarding Gaza (Ps 33:10-11; Prov 21:30).

Lord G-d, if the war with Hamas is not won until Israel commits to recapturing all of Gaza, then work on the new government team and the majority of Israelis so that they agree to do exactly that (Neh 2:20).

G-d of Jacob, fulfill Malachi 1:4, and whatever Esau/Edom (the spiritual roots of Islam) attempts to build in Gaza, or anywhere else in Your land, rise up and bring it down (Isa 34:5; 63:1–6).

Almighty G-d, let the pride of Hamas lead them to destruction (2 Sam 22:28b; Prov 16:18).

Thank You, Lord, that the IDF is destroying the terror tunnels in the area of Gaza they now control (more than 60%), finding weapons caches, and neutralizing Hamas terrorists (Job 12:22; Ps 95:4; 139:12).

Commander of the heavenly hosts, strengthen Your protection over the IDF soldiers in Gaza against attacks, booby traps, kidnapping attempts, accidents, and friendly fire (Ps 32:7; 121:4).

Lord, we rejoice that tens of thousands of "Palestinians" have already left Gaza, and we ask that its gates remain wide open for the rest (Isa 60:12; Jer 12:17).

Abba, let Iran’s financial crisis severely damage the finances of Hamas and Islamic Jihad (Prov 11:4a).

King Jesus, let Your light shine through the believers in Gaza, so that many Muslims may be drawn to You (Mt 5:16).

Click to expand...

While you are praying, include the 62,000 Palestinians that Israel killed, amongst them,20,000 children.
And also pray that God would bless and strengthen the IDF as they rape, pillage, displace and kill Palestinians in the West Bank.

Aussie52 said:

While you are praying, include the 62,000 Palestinians that Israel killed, amongst them,20,000 children.
And also pray that God would bless and strengthen the IDF as they rape, pillage, displace and kill Palestinians in the West Bank.

Click to expand...

Opinions may differ regarding political and military strategy in the Middle East, but accusing an entire army of systematic crimes does not lead to an objective discussion.

My prayer expresses a clear intention. It is for the protection of soldiers, the defeat of Hamas’s terror, and the establishment of justice, not for the suffering of civilians. The Bible teaches us to pray for victory over evil and for the protection of those who fight against terror
(2 Sam 22:28).

The concerns you mentioned regarding injustice and violence are already included in the prayer. The prophetic context in Isaiah clearly shows that G-d is a G-d of vengeance in the dispute over Zion, and His judgment strikes the powers that seek to destroy Israel
(Isa 34:5 .8). At the same time, however, He is a holy G-d before whose face no human wrongdoing goes unpunished. By praying that His will be done, we entrust the final judgment to Him: He will break evil powers such as Hamas, but He sees, hears, and judges every injustice on this earth with absolute infallibility in stark contrast to us humans, who often perceive things only selectively.

Praying for His will therefore automatically entails the exposure and end of all injustice. It never involves taking pleasure in the suffering of the innocent, for every human being is created in His image. I therefore pray specifically that Muslims in Gaza may find peace and salvation through Jesus Christ, as I wrote in my post.