The armed terror wing of Hamas has warned Israel’s prime minister that he will be responsible for the deaths of captives taken hostage on October 7 if the country continues to bomb Gaza.
A chilling image posted on the Telegram feed of the Al-Qassam Brigades – as the armed wing of Hamas is officially known – showed a mocked-up image of people looking at a TV screen learning that hostages had been killed in airstrikes.
The mock-up TV screen, styled like a breaking news alert, bears the message: ‘Al-Qassam Brigades: “We announce the killing of all the prisoners we had after they were bombed by Zionist warplanes”.’
The image, written in Arabic and Hebrew, was captioned: ‘If Netanyahu continues the war, be prepared for this news.’
Hamas is believed to still hold more than 100 live captives after releasing 105 during the short-lived ceasefire last year in exchange for Palestinian prisoners; some of those in its captivity are believed to have been killed.
Hamas has blamed Israel for some of the killings, including the recent deaths of Yossi Sharabi and Itay Svirsky. News of their fate was announced in a video narrated by another Israeli hostage, Noa Argamani, earlier this month.
Israel denies responsibility for their deaths, but has admitted that it was carrying out strikes on a building close to where they were being held.
The threat to hostages comes after the Foreign Office announced it would halt future funding of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA).
The aid agency is a critical source of support for people in Gaza, but has faced accusations from Israel that some of its staff were involved in the October 7 attacks.
Israel has claimed that some of the aid agency’s employees actively took part in Hamas’ incursion into Israel three months ago, which killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and saw militants take around 250 people hostage.
The UK has joined the US, Australia and Canada in pausing funding; the UNRWA says it was investigating and had already terminated the employment of several people.
Announcing the investigation, UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said on Friday that he had decided to terminate the contracts of some staff members to protect the agency’s ability to deliver humanitarian assistance.
Lazzarini did not disclose the number of employees allegedly involved in the attacks, nor the nature of their alleged involvement.
He said, however, that ‘any UNRWA employee who was involved in acts of terror’ would be held accountable, including through criminal prosecution. During weeks of Israeli bombardment of the
A statement from the Foreign Office said it was ‘appalled’ by the allegations but remained ‘committed’ to getting humanitarian aid into Gaza.
UNRWA has denied past claims by Israel; UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq told reporters earlier: ‘We are not responding to rhetoric.’
But the US Department of State said it was ‘extremely troubled’ by the claims and called for ‘complete accountability’ for those involved in the attacks.
Speaking to the BBC, the organisation’s former chief spokesperson Christopher Gunness said that the suspension of aid to UNRWA was ‘disproportionate’.
He warned that it would only lead to further suffering in Gaza, and that the UNWRA had demonstrated its commitment to peace by sacking those at the centre of the allegations.
Mr Gunness said: ‘One million displaced people are currently taking refuge in and around UNRWA buildings. They are the ones who will suffer as a result of this decision’
‘The curtailing of UNRWA services will also destabilise the region at a time when Western governments are trying to contain a regional conflagration.’
UNRWA was set up to help refugees of the 1948 war at Israel’s founding and provides education, health and aid services to Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon.
It helps about two thirds of Gaza’s 2.3million population and has played a pivotal aid role during the war that Israel launched to eliminate Hamas after the Oct. 7 attacks.
It has repeatedly warned that its ability to provide relief to the people of Gaza is collapsing.
Mr Netanyahu has resisted repeated calls to scale back Israel’s bombardment of Gaza, which Palestinian health authorities say has killed over 26,000 people, two thirds of which are thought to be women and children.
His commitment to continuing the war against Hamas was unbroken even following a ruling by the International Court of Justice that called on Israel to do more to minimise civilian casualties.
The ICJ ruling came following an appeal by South Africa to deem the country’s bombardment of Gaza an act of genocide and for it to order a ceasefire. Israel denies that it is committing genocide.
In a response to the ICJ ruling on Friday, Mr Netanyahu said: ‘Israel’s commitment to international law is unwavering. Equally unwavering is our sacred commitment to continue to defend our country and defend our people.
‘Like every country, Israel has an inherent right to defend itself. The vile attempt to deny Israel this fundamental right is blatant discrimination against the Jewish state.’
There is growing dissent towards Netanyahu from both the families of some of the hostages held by Hamas, who believe the prime minister has not done enough to secure their release, and the Israeli public.
Thousands gathered in Tel Aviv earlier this month to call for him to resign.
An opinion poll carried out by the Israel Democracy Institute found the majority of Israelis still support military action, but just 15 per cent want Netanyahu to stay in office after the war in Gaza ends.
Emily Foster is a globe-trotting journalist based in the UK. Her articles offer readers a global perspective on international events, exploring complex geopolitical issues and providing a nuanced view of the world’s most pressing challenges.
