For those who haven’t heard, Hamas has refused to agree to any deal with Israel that would lead to the continuation of the “ceasefire” deal. By refusing to negotiate “stage two” of the deal, they have broken the deal.

Thanks to their obscene displays arranged to humiliate and mock Israeli hostages as they were being handed over to the Red Cross, we all know that many monsters willing to wear the uniform of Hamas still exist in Gaza. Amazing how they all found their uniforms as soon as there was a “ceasefire,” hmmm? Now that Hamas has refused to negotiate further (after dangling the one remaining living American hostage in front of negotiators and then yanking everything off the table), and there is no “deal” to be honored in exchange for lives, Israel has resumed its military offensive. While the mainstream media claims that Israel broke the deal because they restarted the offensive, this is more of a “Han shot first” moment. Yes, Israel is moving forward and conducting a bombing campaign. They just happened to shoot first while Hamas was holding both hostages, and a proverbial gun.

Yesterday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave a speech (in English) announcing the resumption of military actions against Hamas.

“Hamas is responsible for this war.

It invaded our towns, murdered our people, raped our women and kidnapped our loved ones.

Hamas refused offer after offer to release our hostages.

In the past two weeks, Israel did not initiate any military action in the hope that Hamas would change course. Well, that didn’t happen.

While Israel accepted the offer of President Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, Hamas flatly refused to do so.

This is why I authorized yesterday the renewal of military action against Hamas.

Israel does not target Palestinian civilians. We target Hamas terrorists.

And when these terrorists embed themselves in civilian areas, when they use civilians as human shields, they are the ones who are responsible for all unintended casualties.

Palestinian civilians should avoid any contact with Hamas terrorists, and I call on the people of Gaza, get out of harm’s way. Move to safer areas. Because every civilian casualty is a tragedy and every civilian casualty is the fault of Hamas.

I thank President Trump for his unwavering support for Israel. Our alliance with the United States has never been stronger.

To those who criticize Israel, I ask, what would you do if terrorists murdered and kidnapped your children?

You would do what we are doing.

In the face of pure evil, free societies have no choice but to fight.

So, I want to assure all our friends around the world, Israel will fight and Israel will win. We will bring our people home and we will destroy Hamas.

We will not relent until we achieve all these vital goals and we will not rest until we give our country a future of peace, prosperity and hope”.

His message was echoed by Minister of Defense Israel Katz, who addressed the people in Gaza directly.

Minister of Defense Israel Katz published a message directed at Palestinians in Gaza:

“Residents of Gaza, this is your last warning. The first Sinwar ruined Gaza, the second Sinwar will destroy it completely. The Air Force strikes on Hamas terrorists were just the first step.…

— Aviva Klompas (@AvivaKlompas) March 19, 2025

The full statement reads:

“Residents of Gaza, this is your last warning. The first Sinwar ruined Gaza, the second Sinwar will destroy it completely. The Air Force strikes on Hamas terrorists were just the first step. The continuation will be much worse and you will pay the full price.

Soon, the population will again be evacuated from the combat zones. If the Israeli hostages are not released and Hamas is not removed from Gaza – Israel will act with force the likes of which you have yet not seen.

Take the advice of the President of the United States. Return the hostages and get rid of Hamas, and other options will open for you – including emigration to other places in the world for those who so wish. The alternative is total ruin and destruction.”

Notice in both Katz’s and Netanyahu’s statements how pivotal the support of President Trump is at this moment. Imagine what would have developed if Joe Biden had been cognitively aware and had the balls to stand up to demand the return of hostages on October 8th.

Airstrikes have now reportedly eliminated members of Hamas senior leadership, and a ground offensive has begun in central and southern Gaza. Leaflet drops in northern Gaza are warning civilians to evacuate. In other words, this new offensive looks to be moving much faster and with much more purpose than previous ones – likely because Israel knows they have the backing of President Trump to do what is necessary, instead of constantly having to check in with the Biden administration.

But Israel has sent a much more serious signal that this is the final straw for Hamas. They are saying that they are willing to take what Hamas values above all else. It isn’t their people – Hamas sacrifices civilians by using them as human shields, and the population has been conditioned that to die for “jihad” is the greatest honor they can receive. It isn’t money. It isn’t arms, or water, or electricity.

It’s land.

Per Amit Segal: Israel is considering threatening Hamas that for every hostage harmed, a part of the Gaza Strip will be annexed. pic.twitter.com/w4xCuDi3PL

— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) March 18, 2025

The ONE THING that will freak Hamas right out is losing territory. Remember, their whole aim is to possess the land “from the river to the sea.” Land, and only land, and making it Judenrein has been their ultimate goal for decades, if not centuries. For Israel to say that they will start annexing parts of Gaza for any hostage harmed, with the likely blessing of the United States, will legitimately send Hamas into a fit. And Israel should be strategic about the amount of land and where they take it. Perhaps a new 100 kilometer “buffer zone” all the way around the border of Gaza, in order to prevent another invasion attack like October 7th from happening again? I’m failing to see the downside of that. Think of it as “land for peace” – but this time, Gaza will give up the land to keep the peace. Israel needs to do this.

The speed, precision, and aggressive nature of this military operation by Israel tells us two things – first, that they took the time given to them by the ceasefire to plan for what was always inevitable, and second, that President Trump gave them the green light to do it. Hamas either comes back to the negotiating table in hopes of sparing their sorry lives for a time, in exchange for hostages, or they live in fear, on the run, certain of their own doom. And if their square footage happens to decrease at the same time – too bad for them.

Featured image: flag of Israel by edu_castro27 via Pixabay, cropped and modified, Pixabay license