Israel gives Hamas terrorists chilling choice before deadly airstrikes

Israeli intelligence officers reportedly gave Hamas terrorists a final choice: separate from their families before being killed in an airstrike, or risk taking their relatives with them.

By World Israel News Staff

Israel’s Shin Bet security agency has reportedly been calling wanted Hamas terrorists in Gaza shortly before eliminating them, offering a chilling choice: leave their families behind and face death alone, or remain with their loved ones and put their lives in danger.

According to the Saudi newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat, the extraordinary tactic has been used at least five times in recent months, with Israeli intelligence officers giving targeted terrorists an opportunity to distance themselves from their relatives before an airstrike.

One such incident reportedly unfolded Wednesday in Khan Younis, where Mohammed Alyan al-Bayouk, a member of Hamas’s elite Nukhba force, received an unexpected telephone call from a Shin Bet officer.

The officer allegedly informed Bayouk that he was about to be eliminated and presented him with an ultimatum: separate from his family or expose them to the impending strike.

Bayouk reportedly chose to spare his relatives and climbed onto the roof of the building where he was staying.

Moments later, an Israeli aircraft fired a missile, killing him.

According to a relative interviewed by the Saudi newspaper, Bayouk’s aunt attempted to prevent him from leaving after receiving the call. She was seriously wounded in the subsequent strike.

The IDF and Shin Bet confirmed Bayouk’s elimination but did not publicly confirm the reported telephone conversation.

Bayouk was identified as a member of Hamas’s Nukhba force, the elite terrorist unit that played a central role in the October 7, 2023, massacre in southern Israel.

Nukhba terrorists were among those who infiltrated Israeli communities and military installations during the assault, which left approximately 1,200 people dead and saw 251 others abducted into Gaza.

Israel has since made the elimination of Hamas operatives involved in the massacre a central objective of its military and intelligence operations.

A deadly ultimatum unlike any ordinary warning

The reported telephone calls differ significantly from the broader evacuation warnings Israel has issued during military operations in Gaza.

Rather than instructing residents to leave an area ahead of an attack, Shin Bet officers reportedly contact the intended target directly, informing him that an Israeli strike is imminent.

The warning presents the terrorist with a personal decision that could determine whether family members are caught in the attack.

Such calls could potentially reduce civilian casualties by encouraging wanted operatives to move away from relatives, although Israeli authorities have not publicly confirmed that this is the purpose of the reported practice.

Sources in Gaza told Asharq Al-Awsat that the warnings have primarily targeted Hamas operatives involved in active military operations.

Senior commanders, however, have sometimes been eliminated in larger strikes without receiving similar warnings, according to the newspaper’s sources.

The Shin Bet has not publicly confirmed whether the calls represent an official operational policy or explained how targets are selected to receive them.

Israel has repeatedly accused Hamas of operating from densely populated civilian areas, arguing that the terrorist organization’s military activities place Palestinian residents at risk.

The reported calls suggest a different approach to targeted killings, in which intelligence officers may provide individual warnings without abandoning the operation against the intended target.

According to Asharq Al-Awsat, terrorists who received such warnings generally complied with instructions to distance themselves from family members, suggesting that Bayouk’s final decision was part of a recurring pattern in which wanted Hamas operatives were given a brief opportunity to protect their relatives before being eliminated.