--- description: The comments from an Al-Qassem brigades spokesperson comes two days after the IDF recovered the bodies of six hostages killed in Gaza. title: Hamas Says Hostage Guards Are Operating Under New Orders image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc534a9bd92aeabd7/698a5a73011682722b9862f9/hamas-al-qassam-prisoner-swap.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Israel-Hamas War](/tag/israel-hamas-war/) ## Israel-Hamas War Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Hamas Says Hostage Guards Have Been Operating Under New Orders by [Anna Gordon](/author/anna-gordon/) ## Anna Gordon Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Gordon was a reporter for TIME, based in the London bureau. Sep 3, 2024 11:50 AM CUT  Hamas' military wing Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades are present as the prisoner swap between Israel and Hamas, mediated by the United States of America, Egypt and Qatar, continues in Khan Yunis, Gaza on November 29, 2023. Hamas' military wing Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades are present as the prisoner swap between Israel and Hamas, mediated by the United States of America, Egypt and Qatar, continues in Khan Yunis, Gaza on November 29, 2023.Mustafa Hassona–Anadolu/Getty Images by [Anna Gordon](/author/anna-gordon/) ## Anna Gordon Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Gordon was a reporter for TIME, based in the London bureau. Sep 3, 2024 11:50 AM CUT Hamas’ armed wing said on Monday that the militant group has been [operating under new orders](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/hamas-says-hostage-guards-gaza-are-operating-new-instructions-rcna169276 "undefined") since June should Israeli soldiers approach their locations in Gaza. The announcement came just two days after the Israel Defense Forces recovered the bodies of six hostages killed in Gaza this weekend. The bodies were found in a tunnel underneath the Gazan city of Rafah. The hostages appeared to have been killed between Thursday evening and Friday morning, just hours before the Israeli military reached them, according to Israel’s National Institute of Forensic Medicine. Their autopsies indicated that they had all been shot at close ranges, apparently by execution. **Read More:**[_Scenes From Israel, Where Protesters Blame Netanyahu for the Deaths of Hostages_](https://time.com/7016741/israel-protests-netanyahu-six-hostages-deaths/ "undefined") Abu Ubaida, a spokesperson for Hamas’ Al-Qassem Brigade’, said that the new instructions came into place after Israel [conducted a rescue operation](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-europe-69102543 "undefined") in June that freed four hostages but resulted in the deaths of [dozens of Palestinians](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-europe-69102543 "undefined"), including women and children. Abu Ubaida did not offer details on what the new instructions were and said Hamas holds Israel responsible for the latest hostage deaths. “Netanyahu's insistence to free prisoners through military pressure, instead of sealing a deal, means they will be returned to their families in shrouds. Their families must choose whether they want them dead or alive,” he said. A group representing families of the hostages demanded that Netanyahu “address the nation and take responsibility.” **Read More:** [_The Families of Israelis Held Hostage by Hamas Speak Out_](https://time.com/6324741/israel-hostages/ "undefined") At [a press conference on Monday](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r%5FpJHHq2TOo "undefined"), Netanyahu said the hostages had been shot in the back of the head and that he asked their families for forgiveness. “I’m asking for your forgiveness that we didn’t manage to bring them back alive,” he said. “Hamas will pay a very heavy price for that.” Within Israel, uproar emerged following the news that six more hostages were killed in Gaza. About half a million Israelis took to the streets across the country on Sunday to express their outrage and grief and to demand a hostage release deal. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/7016928/hamas-hostage-guards-new-orders/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/7016928/hamas-hostage-guards-new-orders/"},"headline":"Hamas Says Hostage Guards Have Been Operating Under New Orders","datePublished":"2024-09-03T11:50:20.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-24T18:13:56.411Z","description":"The comments come two days after the IDF recovered the bodies of six hostages killed in Gaza","url":"https://time.com/7016928/hamas-hostage-guards-new-orders/","keywords":["Israel-Hamas War"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc534a9bd92aeabd7/698a5a73011682722b9862f9/hamas-al-qassam-prisoner-swap.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Anna Gordon","jobTitle":"Gordon was a reporter for TIME, based in the London bureau.","url":"https://time.com/author/anna-gordon/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc534a9bd92aeabd7/698a5a73011682722b9862f9/hamas-al-qassam-prisoner-swap.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Hamas' military wing Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades","caption":"Hamas Al Qassam prisoner swap","creditText":"Mustafa Hassona–Anadolu/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/israel-hamas-war/","name":"Israel-Hamas War"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/7016928/hamas-hostage-guards-new-orders/","name":"Hamas Says Hostage Guards Have Been Operating Under New Orders"}}]}] ```