The Israel Defense Forces on Friday said that it mistakenly shot dead three Israeli hostages during operations in a neighbourhood of Gaza City.
The Israeli forces identified the three men as Yotam Haim (28), Alon Shamriz (26) and Samer Talalka (25).
The three men were among the 240 hostages that were taken by the Palestinian militant group Hamas on October 7 during a raid. The attack by Hamas had also killed 1,200 persons and ensued Israel’s offensive in Gaza.
The Israeli air and ground offensive in Gaza has killed over 18,000 people since October 7, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. Around 2.2 million people have been displaced from their homes in the besieged region.
“During combat in Shejaiya, the IDF [Israeli Defense Forces] mistakenly identified 3 Israeli hostages as a threat and as a result, fired toward them and the hostages were killed,” the Israeli military said in a tweet.
It said that the incident took place in an active combat zone.
“Immediate lessons from the event have been learned, which have been passed on to all IDF troops in the field,” it said. “The IDF expresses deep remorse over the tragic incident and sends the families its heartfelt condolences. Our national mission is to locate the missing and return all the hostages home.”
The three men were among the remaining hostages in Gaza. Hamas had released more than 100 hostages in exchange for Palestinians held in Israeli jails last month, reported AFP.
The Israeli military had also recovered bodies of three other hostages killed by Hamas from Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the incident as an “unbearable tragedy”.
“My heart goes out to the bereaved families at this difficult time,” he said in a tweet. “I strengthen our courageous soldiers engaged in the sacred mission of bringing home our hostages, while risking their lives in doing so.”
The development also triggered protests in Tel Aviv as hundreds of people gathered at Israel’s ministry of defence calling on Netanyahu to secure the release of the remaining 129 hostages, reported AFP. The demonstrators waved Israeli flags and held placards with messages like: “Every day, a hostage dies.”
This comes as the United Nations and several other countries have been urging for a ceasefire and restoration of peace in the region.
United States President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan urged Israel to scale down its military campaign in the Palestinian territory, reported Reuters. The US has asked Tel Aviv to shift to narrowly targeted operations against Hamas in Gaza.
However, on Saturday at least 14 people died from airstrikes in Old Gaza Street in Jabalia, reported Reuters citing the official Palestinian Wafa news agency. Dozens more were killed in a separate airstrike that hit another home in Jabalia.
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