So then you admit this entire war has nothing to do with hostages or their release. Yes?
And just incase it has to be explained to you Rich, when someone takes hostages they want something in return. Typically hostage taking does not involve an unconditional return of hostages because that kinda defeats the purpose. So Israel can only have one or the other. Not both.
Here's a fact for you...the Hamas Doctrine
Hamas is an Arabic acronym for the Islamic Resistance Movement. It has called on members of the other two Abrahamic faiths—Judaism and Christianity—to accept Islamic rule in the Middle East.
“It is the duty of the followers of other religions to stop disputing the sovereignty of Islam in this region, because the day these followers should take over there will be nothing but carnage, displacement and terror,” it decreed. Hamas also rejected any prospect of peace or coexistence with the state of Israel. “Initiatives, proposals and international conferences are all a waste of time and vain endeavors. The Palestinian people know better than to consent to having their future, rights and fate toyed with.”
in one moment calling for liberation of all the lands that were part of historic Palestine and in another moment claiming Hamas could live alongside another state based on the 1967 borders, when Israel seized Gaza from Egypt. In December 2012, Khaled Mashaal, a leader in exile, reflected the traditional Hamas hardline, “The state will come from resistance, not negotiation. Liberation first, then statehood. Palestine is ours from the river to the sea and from the south to the north,” he said in a
speech. “There will be no concession on any inch of the land. We will never recognize the legitimacy of the Israeli occupation, and therefore there is no legitimacy for Israel… We will free Jerusalem inch by inch, stone by stone. Israel has no right to be in Jerusalem.”
Your ultimate wet dream promise from your neighborhood terrorists...an Israel free Palestine... I really wonder where they will put the jews once they achieve rhe lands from river to see, north to south....