Israel acknowledges its “failure” after the deaths of three hostages at the hands of its own soldiers, but no punishment is expected
The Israeli army published this Thursday the result of its investigation into the deaths of three Israeli hostages that its troops accidentally shot on the 15th. “The Israel Defense Forces have failed in their mission to rescue the hostages,” said Israel Army Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi. “The entire chain of command feels responsible.” However, the Israeli army is not expected to take disciplinary action against the soldiers who killed the three prisoners.
Halevi acknowledged that “the attacks on the prisoners could have been avoided” because “in a situation where there is no immediate threat and no clear enemy is identified, a moment of investigation is required before shooting.” “This is necessary, among other things, to avoid incidents in which our armed forces fire on our armed forces,” he added.
According to the report, the three dead hostages “moved non-threateningly and were holding a white flag,” so it “would have been correct to confirm the identification before the shooting,” but “the pressure conditions and…” The operational environment made it difficult for the soldier the implementation of these measures.”
According to military investigations, one of the hostages, Yotam Haim, was shot dead fifteen minutes after soldiers operating in the Shijayia district of Gaza City shot the other two hostages, Samer Talalka and Alon Shamriz.
According to the investigation, Haim fled after the other two prisoners were shot, and “about 15 minutes later, the battalion commander heard cries for help in Hebrew.” He then “gave the order to cease fire and shouted 'Come to us' in Hebrew.” , whereupon the hostage “came out of a building toward the Israeli forces,” but “two soldiers who did not hear the order” stopped him. When the fire broke out “because of the noise of a nearby tank, they shot him.”
According to the investigation, before their accidental killing, the hostages “were shirtless, and one of them was waving a white flag and standing at a point where the position of the soldier who fired was only partially visible.” (Efe)