Israel's Ultimatum Ahead of Ramadan: Free Hostages or Face Tougher IDF Action

Hostage talks are set to start again.  But Israel is drawing a hardline: either Hamas frees those hostages by Ramadan or the IDF will smash the terrorists' last stronghold in Rafah during the Muslim Holy month. This comes as sickening details continue to spill out about Hamas' brutal sexual assaults against Israeli women on October 7th.

Israel's war against Hamas started months ago in the north of Gaza, but the military says it continues to expand its activities there.  Troops were seen running and firing as they made their way from building to building.

Israeli negotiators are headed back to long-stalled talks aimed at getting the release of more than 130 hostages that Hamas may still hold captive in Gaza.   Israel's returning to talks only because mediators say Hamas has softened its demands –  like a total end to the war.

Israel says no matter what, it will fight till it's permanently ended the threat of Hamas.

Israeli War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz has repeated his demand that Hamas release all the hostages before the March 10th start of Ramadan.  If they don't, he says the IDF will strike into its last major target.  That's the city of Rafah, which right now is packed with more than a million Palestinians who fled earlier fighting elsewhere in Gaza.

More on that new report to the United Nations showing almost unbelievable and horrific sexual violence committed by Hamas against Israeli women on October 7th.

The head of the group issuing the report discussed the shocking details with our Middle East correspondent, Julie Stahl.

"Shooting in the genitals, disfiguring the body, especially in the genitals. It happened in all places, burning of bodies in all places. Gang raping,” Orit Sulitzeanu, Executive Director of the Association of Rape Crisis Centers in Israel told CBN News.

"It was systematic, planned, intentional sexual violence atrocities, very sadistic and very brutal,” Sulitzeanu said. She is outraged how much the world has ignored them, saying, "It's very hard to see that these kind of things happen and the world denies, doesn't care, doesn't believe."

Some of the tens of thousands of Israelis who evacuated many dozens of communities close to Gaza after Hamas' deadly attack are preparing to return to their homes.  Many were too terrified of another invasion or continued barrages of missiles from Gaza, but both threats appear nearly over.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is also dealing with the same issue of getting Israeli evacuees back to their homes in northern Israel.  Many fled the almost daily shelling and drone attacks launched by Hezbollah terrorists from Lebanon since October.  

Netanyahu was visiting troops on the Golan Heights and promised an end to the Hezbollah threat and safety for Israeli residents. He told them, "We will achieve it in one of two ways: by military means if required; in a political way if possible."

Meanwhile, he's presented his war cabinet a plan for Gaza after the war. 

It includes a complete demilitarization of Gaza except for Israeli troops manning a buffer zone between Gaza and Israel.  It calls for de-radicalizing Gaza's Palestinians. Polls show by a vast majority that Palestinians support Hamas' goals of wiping out the nation of Israel and its entire Jewish population. 

The post-war plan also envisions a takeover by local Palestinians experienced in governing, but only if they're not connected to terrorist groups.