Israel Defense Forces unintentionally killed three of the hostages held in Gaza, the military’s spokesman admitted on Friday.
The killed hostages were identified by the IDF as Yotam Haim and Samer Talalka, both of whom were kidnapped during the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks in Israel. The third abductee’s name was not revealed.
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“During the fighting in Shejaiya, an IDF force mistakenly identified three Israeli hostages as a threat,” IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari said. “As a result the force fired at them and they were killed. During a scan and inspection of the area of the incident, a suspicion arose regarding the identity of the dead. The bodies were taken for examination in Israeli territory, after which it turned out that they were three Israeli abductees.”
Hagari said an investigation was launched “immediately.”
This is the first time the IDF has admitted to killing any of the hostages. Hamas kidnapped roughly 240 people during the attack, while more than a hundred were released during a weeklong ceasefire in late November, though there are still more than a hundred in Hamas custody.
“The IDF emphasizes that this is an active combat zone in which ongoing fighting over the last few days has occurred. Immediate lessons from the event have been learned, which have been passed on to all IDF troops in the field,” Hagari 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 Israeli military operations in Gaza have always posed a risk to the hostages, though this is the first known instance of Israeli forces harming or killing one of the hostages.
There are believed to be eight Americans among the hostages, the families of whom met with President Joe Biden earlier this week as officials emphasize the need to secure their freedom.
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“We’re still working by the hour to try to get a pause back in place so that hostages can get released,” National Security Council coordinator John Kirby said on Thursday. “I’ll let the Israelis speak to their negotiators and where they are and what they’re going to focus on.”
Hamas has claimed that Israeli airstrikes had killed some of the hostages, though those claims have not been verified.
