Israeli forces say they've recovered the bodies of six hostages taken on October 7 in what was described as a "complex operation" that they carried out in the tunnels beneath the city of Khan Younis.

Five of the six hostages had been identified as deceased by the Israeli government earlier. They were identified as Yagev Buchshtab, Alexander Dancyg, Avraham Munder, Yoram Metzger, Nadav Popplewell, and Haim Peri. All but Munder were already known to have lost their lives in captivity.

The cause of their deaths was not immediately known. Hamas says they were killed in Israeli bombings. 

More than 100 captives remain in Hamas custody with at least 30 believed to be dead. 

“It is absolutely clear to me that it was possible to bring him back home,” Mati Dancyg said Tuesday on Kan, Israel’s public radio network, adding, “Netanyahu chose to sacrifice the hostages.’’

A more accurate description would be that Netanyahu refused to pay the price that Hamas asked to have the hostages released. Of course, it was "possible" to bring the captives home. Blaming Netanyahu for a situation not of his making might be understandable from grieving family members but inexcusable from Netanyahu's political enemies who are using the hostage situation to score political points against the Israeli prime minister.

“Our hearts grieve over the terrible loss,” Netanyahu said in a statement on Tuesday. “The State of Israel will continue to make every effort to return all of our hostages — the living and the deceased.”

New York Times:

Mr. Netanyahu has blamed Hamas for obstructing a deal. Mr. Netanyahu’s critics in Israel, as well as Hamas officials, say that Mr. Netanyahu recently added new conditions to a proposal outlined by President Biden in late May, adding to the difficulty of finalizing a deal.

Considering that Hamas has changed its demands for the hostage's release several times since October 7 and Israel never accepted Biden's proposal in full, it hardly matters that Netanyahu sharpened his conditions for a ceasefire.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken now says that Israel has accepted an American "bridging proposal" that would be an intermediate step to a ceasefire.

Reuters:

Months of on-off talks have circled the same issues, with Israel saying the war can only end with the destruction of Hamas as a military and political force and Hamas saying it will only accept a permanent, not temporary, ceasefire.

There are disagreements over Israel's continued military presence inside Gaza, particularly along the border with Egypt, the free movement of Palestinians inside the territory, and the identity and number of prisoners to be freed in a swap.

Hamas officials accused Washington of favoring Israel.

"When Blinken says that the Israelis agreed and then the Israelis say that there is an updated proposal, this means that the Americans are subject to Israeli pressure and not the other way around. We believe that it is a maneuver that gives the Israelis more time," senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan told Reuters.

Hamas is in no hurry to conclude a deal of any kind. They're allowing the U.S. and the rest of the world to pressure Israel to stop the war and allow Hamas to survive. Civilian casualties are a bonus for the terrorists. The more the better. 

The brain-dead protesters in Chicago don't realize or don't care that terrorists are manipulating them into doing their bidding. It's a very sad commentary on a political party that helped the state of Israel come into existence and stood by its side while much of the rest of the world ganged up on it.