The IDF immediately began investigating the incident, the circumstances of which are still under investigation.
Israeli forces incorrectly identified three hostages as a threat, Hams militants who escaped from captivity and opened fire on them, killing them during the fighting in Gaza.
The speaker of the Israel Defense Forces announced this on the evening of Friday, December 15, reports The Times of Israel.
“This is a tragic incident, the IDF takes responsibility. This is an area where soldiers encountered many terrorists, including kamikazes who had bombs,” said Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari.
When asked how the hostages managed to escape from Hamas captivity, Hagari said the military believed that “three escaped or were abandoned by the terrorists who held them captive.”
“After they [the hostages] were shot, during the inspection, suspicion immediately arose about the identity of the dead, and their bodies were quickly transferred for examination to Israel, where the hostages were identified,” explained Israeli Army Speaker.
“This is a sad and painful event for all of us, and the IDF bears responsibility for everything that happened,” he emphasized.
The IDF immediately began investigating the incident, the circumstances of which are still under investigation. In the meantime, new hostage identification protocols have been transferred to ground forces to ensure that such tragic events do not happen again.
Who were the killed hostages
The hostages are identified as Yotam Haim, who was kidnapped by Hamas from Kfar Azah, and Samer Talalku, who was kidnapped from Nir Am. The third hostage was not named at the request of his family.
Yotam Haim was a heavy metal drummer who was kidnapped from his home in Kibbutz Kfar Aza on October 7, 2023.
Recall that Hamas continues to hold 132 hostages in the Gaza Strip. We are talking about 113 men and 19 women.
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