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If so, give them credit for sticking to the bit. The only problem is that Hamas is running out of time for playing games — and no one’s coming to their aid.

After the fall of Bashar al-Assad and the retreat of Hezbollah, negotiators in Cairo and Doha claimed that Hamas had suddenly decided to offer concessions on hostage negotiations. The elimination of Yahya Sinwar supposedly opened up new options for the terrorists to exit the conflict while saving some face. Donald Trump’s election and subsequent pledge to unleash “hell” on anyone holding Americans hostage appeared to change the calculus in Gaza, too. According to negotiators, Hamas no longer conditioned talks or a first exchange of hostages for prisoners on a complete Israeli cease-fire.

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And then … Lucy yanked the football for the nth time, predictably as well as predicted:

Israeli officials charged Wednesday that Hamas had backed away from a softened stance that could have enabled a ceasefire and hostage deal in the Gaza war, and instead returned to a position that is holding up progress toward an agreement. …

In a statement accusing Israel of derailing the talks, Hamas insisted the ceasefire negotiations via Qatari and Egyptian mediators had been proceeding “in a serious manner” and claimed that it had shown “responsibility and flexibility.”

Who to believe in this scenario? Well, this follows Hamas’ strategy all along, right down to blaming the Israelis for a breakdown in negotiations while reneging on offered concessions. This pattern has repeated in every round of talks for the past year; even Qatar got sick of it at one point and booted Hamas’ billionaire class out of the country for a short period. Hamas uses this strategy to manipulate Western and Arabic media and governments into increasing pressure on Israel to retreat.

And that’s exactly what they’re trying this time, too:

Sources have told The Times of Israel that the Qatari negotiators have been asking the Israeli government to be more flexible, with Hamas seeking assurances that Israel won’t return to fighting after the first phase of the deal is implemented.

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That’s nonsense. Hamas started this war as the governing body of Gaza and with the support of the Gazans on October 7, 2023. They are now losing it, and badly. If they want an end to the war, they can capitulate and ask for terms. If they want a hostages-for-prisoners exchange, they can negotiate that as a separate issue. But after Hamas violated every one of their previous nine cease-fire agreements with Israel — including the one in place on October 7 before Hamas massacred 1200 Israelis in a single day — they have very little standing to demand “assurances” on anything from the Israelis.

And in about four weeks, that pressure will end when Trump takes office. He’d prefer to have this deal done before his inauguration so as to eliminate a distraction, but Trump may also be looking for an opportunity to remind the region of what an American “red line” should look like. Hamas is all alone now in providing An Example To Others, if you know what I mean, and Trump will likely waste little time in driving that point home. 

But what about the end of Yahya Sinwar? Wasn’t he the biggest obstacle? Let’s just say that nihilistic evil runs in the family:

Informed unnamed sources told the Kan public broadcaster that Hamas’s leader in Gaza, Muhammad Sinwar, is even more intractable in the talks than his brother Yahya, the former terror chief, who was slain by Israel in October.

The sources said Hamas was not giving in to pressure to be more accommodating.

Officials speaking to the Israel Hayom newspaper said that Hamas was backtracking after initially appearing to soften its position, enabling a renewed push over the past few weeks for an agreement. They also cite Sinwar’s stubbornness as a key factor in the talks stalling.

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Quelle surprise. 

Update: In yet another example of not getting the message, the leader of the Houthis held a press conference to declare victory against Israel. And that’s when the IDF showed up:

In the middle of a ‘victory’ speech by Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, Israeli airstrikes hit Sana’a and Hodeidah on Thursday.

The strikes targeted Sana’a International Airport’s main runway, control tower, and aircraft. Images broadcast by Sky News Arabia show the airport damaged by fire. … 

According to Al Hadath, strikes also hit the Haziz power plant, the Hodeidah port, the power plant, and oil refineries.

Seven strikes were reported in Sana’a and three in Hodeidah, and dozens of aircraft were spotted in the air.

This appears to be a large-scale, comprehensive operation by the IDF, which now has a lot of time on its hands. We’ll update as developments warrant, but this should be yet another lesson for Iranian proxies about picking fights with Israel … and prematurely believing that they have the last word. And wait until Donald Trump takes office.