The Atlantic magazine published on Friday new details about the thought-out hostage-taking plan that Hamas formulated in preparation for its surprise attack on Israel on October 7. The specific instructions indicate that the terrorists were specifically instructed to separate the women and children from the men. The Atlantic interprets this as confirmation that the kidnapping of the children was planned from the beginning, and did not result from the terrorists' 'excessive' enthusiasm from their surprising success. On Thursday, the IDF Spokesperson revealed that according to estimates, about 30 Israeli children are being held captive in Gaza.
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The manual quoted by The Atlantic is the same one mentioned by President Izzak Herzog talked about earlier this week in an interview with CNN. The handbook was found in the possession of one of the terrorists caught in Israel, and it contains detailed instructions on how to conduct the terrorist attack. Among other things, they were told to kill the "difficult ones", those who may pose some kind of danger, and to use hostages as human shields.
According to The Atlantic report, it appears that Hamas expected a prolonged confrontation with the Israeli security forces on Israeli territory, one that would last for many days. Although it took the IDF a long time to reach the sites of the massacre, a time that cost the lives of many civilians, in the end, the plan to hold positions in Israel for a few days did not succeed. The southern settlements were almost completely cleared of terrorists within two or three days.
The Atlantic states that according to the manual, which was passed on to the magazine by an IDF official, only senior Hamas field commanders were allowed to negotiate with the Israeli authorities during the attack, and even then, they were only allowed to do so under the guidance of their superiors - probably superiors who are in Gaza. During their hostage-taking, the terrorists were barred from sharing their supplies with the captives - such as food and drink - except in emergencies. The terrorists were told to threaten to kill the captives if they resisted, or if Israel attacked them.
The Atlantic estimates that the fact that the hostages were transported to Gaza using improvised means such as scooters and motorcycles - means that were not mentioned in the manual prepared by Hamas for its terrorists - shows that the terrorist organization did not believe that it would be able to transport the captives to Gaza in such a disorderly manner if at all.
Earlier this week, details of the Hamas plan were revealed. The document shows that the first stage of the plan involved gathering the captives from a number of places determined in advance and marked on maps for each terrorist group. The second phase included confinement and control, in which any person who posed a danger or who might distract the terrorists would be killed. According to the plan, this phase also included wreaking havoc by shooting and using smoke bombs, shock grenades, threats and intimidation, and other violent means such as "use electric shocks to force compliance". The terrorists were instructed to "kill hostages expected to resist, and the others are to be bound and blindfolded and to use them as human shields".
The killers from Hamas were also instructed to search the captives, take their IDs and keep them away from means of combat and suicide. They were also required to continually improve their fortifications. Regarding supplies, the terrorists were instructed to collect as much food, drink and first aid supplies as possible. They were instructed not to use their supplies to feed the hostages, except in case of emergency.
In the chapter "Camouflage and Hiding" the terrorists were instructed not to reveal the number of hostages and weapons. They were also instructed to set fire to many places, and not to disclose information about the number of wounded and dead among the kidnapped. Instructions for managing safe communication also appeared in the manual.