The devastation wrought in the Gaza Strip by IDF forces has led top Hamas officials to soften its demands for a hostage release/ceasefire deal, several US and Middle East officials told the Associated Press. For months, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has repeatedly asserted that the only way to pressure Hamas to show up to the negotiation table and release hostages is to continue the war in Gaza. He maintained his stance as left-wing groups around the world and Israel called for a ceasefire and accused Netanyahu of sabotaging hostage release deals and even of wanting the hostages to remain in Gaza for his own purposes. [Prior to October 7th, the same left-wing groups peddled in other lies, namely that Netanyahu was “crushing” democracy due to his vitally needed judicial reform plan.] An Associated Press report published on Monday proves that Netanyahu was right. Read the full report below: Several officials in the Middle East and the U.S. believe the level of devastation in the Gaza Strip caused by a nine-month Israeli offensive has helped push Hamas to soften its demands for a cease-fire agreement. Hamas over the weekend appeared to drop its longstanding demand that Israel promise to end the war as part of any cease-fire deal. The sudden shift has raised new hopes for progress in internationally brokered negotiations. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday said that military pressure — including Israel’s ongoing two-month offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah — “is what has led Hamas to enter negotiations.” In recent internal communications seen by The Associated Press, messages signed by several senior Hamas figures in Gaza urged the group’s exiled political leadership to accept the cease-fire proposal pitched by U.S. President Joe Biden. The messages, shared by a Middle East official familiar with the ongoing negotiations, described the heavy losses Hamas has suffered on the battlefield and the dire conditions in the war-ravaged territory. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to share the contents of internal Hamas communications. The messages indicate divisions within the group and a readiness among top militants to reach a deal quickly, even if Hamas’ top official in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, may not be in a rush. Sinwar has been in hiding since the war erupted last October and is believed to be holed up in a tunnel deep underground. U.S. officials declined to comment on the communications. But a person familiar with Western intelligence who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive matter said the group’s leadership understands its forces have suffered heavy losses and that has helped Hamas move closer to a cease-fire deal. Two U.S. officials say the Americans are aware of internal divisions within Hamas and that those divisions, the destruction in Gaza or pressure from mediators Egypt and Qatar could have been factors in the terror group softening its demands for a deal. The U.S. officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the Biden administration’s view of the current situation. The Middle Eastern official shared details from two internal Hamas communications, both written by senior officials inside Gaza to the group’s exiled leadership in Qatar, where Hamas’ supreme leader, Ismail Haniyeh, is based. The communication suggested that the war had taken a toll on Hamas fighters, with the senior figures […]