Palestinians inspect the damage following an Israeli airstrike on the El-Remal aera in Gaza City on October 9, 2023. Israel continued to battle Hamas fighters on October 10 and massed tens of thousands of troops and heavy armour around the Gaza Strip after vowing a massive blow over the Palestinian militants' surprise attack. Photo by Naaman Omar apaimages
In a heartbreaking incident, the Israeli military admitted on Saturday that three hostages were mistakenly killed by Israeli troops. The victims, found to be shirtless, unarmed, and carrying a makeshift white flag, had aimed to convey their non-threatening status to the military.
There have been many calls for a temporary cessation of hostilities to enable the release of more hostages, and this information has caused great concern. The military, acknowledging a violation of its rules of engagement, disclosed the deaths on Friday, shortly after recovering the bodies of three other Israeli hostages in Gaza.
Violation of Rules of Engagement
Lieutenant General Herzi Halevy, the Israeli military chief of staff, expressed regret over the incident, stating that the hostages had taken measures to signal their harmlessness, such as removing their shirts to prove they were not carrying explosives. Halevy emphasized that shooting individuals who raise a white flag and seek to surrender is strictly forbidden according to open-fire regulations.
Implications for Ongoing Conflict
As the death toll among Palestinians reached nearly 20,000 over the course of 70 days of war, according to Gazan health officials, the tragic shootings of Israeli hostages underscore the persistent risks faced by the more than 120 people still held captive. This has sparked concerns about Israel’s war strategy implementation..
Families of the hostages seized upon this incident to call on the government to prioritize securing the freedom of the captives. Itzik Horn, whose children Eitan, 37, and Yair, 45, were abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz, voiced his belief that Israel should promptly negotiate a deal to free all captives, even if it involves releasing Palestinians held in Israeli jails on terrorism charges.
A Plea for Immediate Action
Horn emphasized that the paramount goal should be the safe return of all hostages, stating, “Let them free all the Palestinian prisoners we have here, all the terrorists — what do I care? The most important thing isn’t to defeat Hamas. The only way to prevail in this conflict is to free every hostage.”
Reassessing strategies and reiterating calls for a ceasefire to prevent further loss of innocent lives, the tragic incident has added a sombre layer to the complexity of the ongoing conflict.
