Israeli PM speaks of ‘unbearable tragedy’ after three hostages killed by IDF in Gaza
The Israeli military has mistakenly killed three hostages held in Gaza after wrongly identifying them as a threat.
The Israeli Defence Forces said the victims, all three Israeli men in their 20s, were killed during combat with Hamas militants.
The victims were identified as Samer Talalka, 22, Yotam Haim, 28, and Alon Shamriz, 26.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called their deaths an “unbearable tragedy” and vowed to continue “with a supreme effort to return all the hostages home safely”.
(L-R) Yotam Haim, Samer Talalka and Alon Shamriz
“Together with the entire people of Israel, I bow my head in deep sorrow and mourn the death of three of our dear sons who were kidnapped,” Mr Netanyahu said.
“My heart goes out to the grieving families in their difficult time.”
Separately, an Israeli strike killed a Palestinian journalist in the south of the Gaza Strip.
Hamas abducted more than 240 people in their attack on 7 October which triggered the war. More than 100 hostages still remain captive, according to Israeli authorities.
Demonstrations calling for the safe return of the hostages take place nearly every day in Israel – including one on Friday, where hundreds of protesters blocked Tel Aviv’s main highway.
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The victims: ‘Gifted musician, avid motorcyclist and dedicated fan’
The three hostages were killed in the Gaza City area of Shijaiyah, where troops have been engaged in fierce fighting with Hamas militants.
A statement by the IDF said they had “mistakenly identified three Israeli hostages as a threat. As a result, the troops fired toward them and they were killed”.
The military expressed “deep remorse” and said it “began reviewing the incident immediately”.
The Hostages and Missing Persons Families Forum, which represents the families of hostages, expressed its condolences and paid tribute to the victims.
It said that “Yotam was a gifted musician and dedicated metal music fan who idolised the band Megadeth” while “Samer was an avid motorcyclist who loved to ride around the countryside and spend time with friends”.
The forum added: “Alon’s family and friends described him as a lover of life and a dedicated basketball fan.”
Al Jazeera camera operator killed
In southern Gaza, al Jazeera said an Israeli strike in the city of Khan Younis had killed cameraman Samer Abu Dakka and wounded its chief correspondent in Gaza, Wael Dahdouh.
Mr Dahdouh, a veteran of covering Israel-Gaza wars whose wife and children were killed by an Israeli strike earlier in the current conflict, was wounded by shrapnel in his right arm.
Samer Abu Daqqa
Speaking from a hospital bed, Mr Dahdouh told the network that he managed to walk to an ambulance.
But Mr Dakka lay bleeding in the school and died hours later.
Israel has approved a plan to capture all of the Gaza Strip and remain there for an unspecified length of time, Israeli officials say.
According to Reuters, the plan includes distributing aid, though supplies will not be let in yet.
The Israeli official told the agency that the newly approved offensive plan would move Gaza’s civilian population southward and keep humanitarian aid from falling into Hamas’s hands.
On Sunday, the United Nations rejected what it said was a new plan for aid to be distributed in what it described as Israeli hubs.
Israeli cabinet ministers approved plans for the new offensive on Monday morning, hours after it was announced that tens of thousands of reserve soldiers are being called up.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has so far failed to achieve his goal of destroying Hamas or returning all the hostages, despite more than a year of brutal war in Gaza.
Palestinian children struggle to get donated food at a community kitchen in Khan Younis, Gaza. Pic: AP
Officials say the plan will help with these war aims but it would also push hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to southern Gaza, exacerbating an already dire humanitarian crisis.
They said the plan included the “capturing of the strip and the holding of territories”.
It would also try to prevent Hamas from distributing humanitarian aid, which Israel says strengthens the group’s rule in Gaza.
The UN rejected the plan, saying it would leave large parts of the population, including the most vulnerable, without supplies.
It said it “appears designed to reinforce control over life-sustaining items as a pressure tactic – as part of a military strategy”.
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More than 52,000 Palestinians have been killed since the IDF launched its ground offensive in the densely-populated territory, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
It followed the deadly Hamas attacks on Israel, which killed 1,200 people and saw around 250 people taken hostage.
A fragile ceasefire that saw a pause in the fighting and the exchange of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners collapsed earlier this year.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to retaliate against the Houthis and their Iranian “masters” after the group launched a missile attack on the country’s main international airport.
A missile fired by the group from Yemen landed near Ben Gurion Airport, causing panic among passengers in the terminal building.
“Attacks by the Houthis emanate from Iran,” Mr Netanyahu wrote on X. “Israel will respond to the Houthi attack against our main airport AND, at a time and place of our choosing, to their Iranian terror masters.”
Israeli police officers investigate the missile crater. Pic: Reuters
The missile impact left a plume of smoke and briefly halted flights and commuter traffic at the airport. Some international carriers have cancelled flights to and from Tel Aviv for several days.
Four people were lightly wounded, paramedic service Magen David Adom said.
Air raid sirens went off across Israel and footage showed passengers yelling and rushing for cover.
The attack came hours before senior Israeli cabinet ministers were set to vote on whether to intensify the country’s military operations in the Gaza Strip, and as the army began calling up thousands of reserves in anticipation of a wider operation in the enclave.
Houthi military spokesperson Brigadier General Yahya Saree said the group fired a hypersonic ballistic missile at the airport.
Iran’s defence minister later told a state TV broadcaster that if the country was attacked by the US or Israel, it would target their bases, interests and forces where necessary.
Israel’s military said several attempts to intercept the missile were unsuccessful.
Air, road and rail traffic were halted after the attack, police said, though it resumed around an hour later.
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Yemen’s Houthis have been firing missiles at Israel since its war with Hamas in Gaza began on 7 October 2023, and while most have been intercepted, some have penetrated the country’s missile defence systems and caused damage.
Israel has previously struck the group in Yemen in retaliation and the US and UK have also launched strikes after the Houthis began attacking international shipping, saying it was in solidarity with Palestinians over Israel’s war with Hamas.
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