The question of whether photos depicting Hamas terrorists in submissive positions contribute to Israel’s war objectives or hinder them intensifies with the increasing frequency of such images being released.

As the IDF intensifies operations in the southern Gaza Strip, the security establishment must take a stance on this matter, which appears to divide opinions.

While these photos may humiliate Hamas, a former senior security official suggests they may not truly serve our interests. “These photos are intended to resonate with the Israeli public, albeit within a specific demographic, but their effectiveness is uncertain,” the former official said.

[Meh. I’ve seen armchair self-professed experts declare these pictures war crimes too, a rather bizarre claim considering how this war started. The pictures depict the surrender of Hamas operatives as well as Gaza civilians, who are required to strip to their underwear first due to the perfidious nature of Hamas and the danger of suicide bombs. Are some staged? In the sense of posing, a couple have been, but they all appear to legitimately depict the detention of men caught in war zones in Gaza. That’s no more a war crime than news reports from a war zone depicting the same actions.

As far as the humiliation backfiring, that seems to miss the point of Hamas’ hyper-masculine honor culture. Death does not demoralize radical Islamist jihadists, but humiliation does. The IDF is using these photos to demonstrate to other potential Hamas recruits and supporters that Hamas consists of cowards rather than martyrs, and that the culture promoted by Haniyeh and Sinwar is a lie. That’s the only way to rob Hamas of a heroic martyrdom narrative. Besides, what would “backfire” mean anyway after 10/7? — Ed]