Israeli hostage mistakenly killed by IDF in Gaza was holding white cloth, officials say

One Israeli hostage was waving a makeshift white flag and another called for help in Hebrew when they were shot dead by Israeli soldiers in Gaza who mistook them for militants, a military official has said.

According to a preliminary investigation, three male hostages, all shirtless, appeared in Shejaiya in northern Gaza, with one holding a long stick with white fabric attached to it.

A soldier nearby mistakenly identified them as militants and opened fire.

Two hostages were hit and the third, who was wounded, managed to escape to a nearby building where other troops heard him crying for help in Hebrew.

Israeli media separately reported that the third wounded hostage had ducked for cover in a building and reappeared before taking cover again after which he was killed by a second soldier before a commander, concerned by the incident issued a ceasefire order.

Smoke rises following an Israeli bombardment in the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel , Saturday, Dec. 16

The Israeli military official said that they believed that the hostages – who were named by the military as Samer Fuad El-Talalka, Yotam Haim and Alon Shamriz – had either been let go or had escaped. They are investigating a building bearing the phrase “SOS” a few hundred metres away from the location of the killings to see if it is connected to the hostages.

Calling the killing of the three hostages “horrific and tragic” the military official told reporters that what happened was against the Israeli military’s rules of engagement.

Following the news hundreds of protesters have marched to the Israeli war cabinet’s meeting spot in Tel Aviv.

Hundreds of protesters blocked Tel Aviv’s main highway late on Friday in a spontaneous demonstration calling for the return of the other hostages.

They later vented their anger outside the Ministry of Defence in Tel Aviv, where the three-pronged Israeli war cabinet meets to discuss the offensive operation in Gaza. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, defence minister Yoav Gallant and former Chief of the General Staff and opposition leader Benny Gantz make up the cabinet.

The protestors carried placards and candles, and chanted “today we learned what happens when there is no deal”, according to footage of the event.

The hostages’ plight has dominated public discourse in Israel since the 7 October attack by Hamas. Roughly 240 Israelis were taken hostage in Gaza on that day while a further 1,200 were killed.

The families of the hostages have led a powerful public campaign calling on the government to do more to bring them home.

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