Some in Western media attribute — well, imply obliquely, really — that the Israeli bombing campaign is what traumatized the hostages who were held underground in the tunnel network Hamas maintains beneath the Gaza Strip. Maybe. Or perhaps it was the regular beatings that Hamas administered to its captives, some of whom were as young as twelve years old. Who knows?

The number of captives who have testified to the rape and sexual assault they endured in Hamas’s custody is now in the double digits, and that’s only those who were fortunate enough to make it out. U.S. officials believe the women who are still in the terrorist group’s possession are being held back so they cannot testify to the sexual violence they’ve endured at Hamas’s hands.

It’s reasonable to wonder if Hamas will ever let them go – especially given reports indicating that Hamas has begun murdering its hostages.

[Biden has forgotten them from the beginning — at least the Americans among them. Despite taking credit for brokering the first and only ‘pause,’ that agreement did not require Hamas to release the Americans. And the media has given Biden a pass for that failure. — Ed]