Families of freed Israeli hostages received letters written under Hamas’s orders while their loved ones were still in captivity — documents that Israeli officials now believe were part of a calculated propaganda effort, not an act of mercy.

The letters were reportedly written by Guy Gilboa-Dalal and Alon Ohel, both released Monday after spending more than two years in Hamas tunnels. The men were forced by their captors to pen the notes, which were later delivered to their families through the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

Gilboa-Dalal’s father, Ilan Dalal, said the letter was hauntingly composed — neat handwriting, calm tone, and a heartbreaking message: his son hoped to be home before his sister’s 18th birthday in December. “I saw Gal and Eli together in a TV report with our shirts on,” the letter read. “I don’t stop thinking about you, and thoughts of you give me strength.”

His family said the letter briefly lifted their hopes — a cruel illusion, they now realize, orchestrated by Hamas to project control and stability. “They wanted to show the world the hostages were fine, when in truth they were being terrorized underground,” one Israeli official told Politico.

Ohel’s letter, reportedly written around the same time, spoke of his longing for family and his determination to survive “the horrors” of captivity.

Intelligence officials believe the letters were written in late August, coinciding with Israel’s renewed military campaign in Gaza City. By allowing contact with the ICRC then, Hamas may have sought to signal that Israeli hostages were being held in active combat zones, effectively using them as human shields to deter strikes.

The revelation adds to growing evidence that Hamas manipulated every fragment of communication during the hostages’ ordeal — leveraging even moments of hope as psychological warfare.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)