Yet another coup d'etat resulted in the assassination of Pekah, whose murderer, Hoshea, was backed by the Assyrians and replaced him on the throne of Israel. By now Israel was in the grip of Assyria. Tiglath Pileser died in 727 B.C. and was succeeded by Shalmaneser V who carried on the aggressive policies of his predecessor. But after Shal¬maneser became king, Hoshea made an attempt to break free from Assyrian control. 2 Kings 17: 4 describes the disastrcus result of Hoshea's plan to join forces with Egypt to resist the Assyrians and to refuse to pay the tribute which was now demanded annually by Assyria. Shalmaneser made Hoshea his prisoner and from then onwards Israel was without any effective leader.