If I was Palestinian I wouldn't count on restraint being able to sway the minds of the baying racists who rules the west to do anything that would make a material difference on the ground in Palestine. And even if sparing the POW's could actually somehow stop the Zionist regime's current campaign of indiscriminate terror the question remains what would follow. More of the same slow-moving genocide done with the vocal approval of the so-called civilised west.

I also don't believe the resistance counted on the POW's being able to protect Palestinians as human shields. It was worth a try but the settler regime's low regard for human life, even of it's own population is well understood and publicly proclaimed in policies like the Hannibal doctrine. I rather think the purpose of the announced executions is to wear down the settlers' morale which seems to be one of the main goals of this intifada. The settlers will no longer be able to live in peace and comfort but will be reminded that a violent death remains a consequence of living in occupied Palestinian land.

If stealing Palestinian land becomes understood to have potential consequences it will have detrimental effects on settler society. The stream of new settlers wil dry up, the economy of the settlers will suffer and settlers themselves will lose faith in the regime's ability to keep them safe in spite of their crimes. Settler life is becoming much more stressful and unpleasant for years to come.