Hamas chief ordered terrorists to keep Israeli hostages alive to use as bargaining chips

Newly-released handwritten documents penned by the late Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar include detailed documentation of the hostages taken captive on October 7th, along with instructions on how to guard them and keep them alive for a deal to release jailed terrorists.

By World Israel News Staff

The late Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar ordered terrorists guarding Israeli captives taken during the invasion of October 7th to ensure the hostages’ survival, so that they could be used to secure the release of jailed Palestinian terrorists, according to documents written by Sinwar which were published by a Palestinian newspaper this week.

The Arabic daily Al-Quds published scans of three pages which allegedly including Sinwar’s instructions to underlings regarding the handling of Israeli hostages.

The documents also include meticulous details regarding their distribution, demographic breakdown, occupations, and names, with some names matching those released during a prior deal in November.

The first document contains directives on protecting the lives of hostages, emphasizing their strategic value for future prisoner exchanges with Israel. Sinwar cited verses from the Quran, underscoring the importance of using the hostages as leverage.

“They are an important card,” Sinwar wrote, according to the report.

A second paper offers a statistical overview of the hostages, categorizing them by gender, age, and civilian or military status. The documents allegedly specify where Bedouin captives are held, although the specific geographic details were censored. This list reportedly tallied a total of 72 hostages at the time of recording, many of whom were subsequently released.

In a third paper, 11 released hostages are listed with identifying information such as age and foreign citizenship status.

The named hostages include Rimon Kirsht, Tami Metzger, and Nili Margalit, the latter noted as a nurse.