While the world speaks of a “historic opportunity for peace,” everyone in Israel knows: this moment was not won in conference rooms but on the battlefields of Gaza—through blood, courage, and determination. Many are asking: Why now? Why only now, after two years of war, suffering, and political stalemate? The answer lies not in diplomatic gestures but in Israel’s ironclad resolve. It was only when the army encircled Hamas’s last stronghold, Gaza City itself, and the government in Jerusalem decided to agree only to a deal that frees all hostages that everything changed. Only when the sword was literally at Hamas’s throat. Today, it’s clear: neither UN appeals, Qatar’s mediations, nor Western politicians’ incantations led to this turning point, but the determination of a people that refuses to forget its brothers and sisters in darkness. Israel fought—not only against terror but for the moral foundation of its existence, the redemption of captives.

It’s the end of an illusion: Hamas could no longer withstand the pressure. The hostages turned from a bargaining...

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