The Hamas images of starving Jews, held hostage in tunnels below Gaza, digging their own graves or unable to even stand, provoked the condemnation that the militant group must surely have expected.
Along with its ally Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), Hamas is now trying to trade food and medical help for Evyatar David, 24, and 21-year-old Rom Braslavski - along with 18 other living hostages - for an end to Israeli air strikes, and the opening of humanitarian corridors for Gaza’s 2.2 million people facing starvation.