The brother of one of the three hostages accidentally shot dead by the Israeli army in the Gaza Strip accused those who “abandoned” him of also “murdering” him during his funeral on Sunday. “You did everything right,” said Ido Shamriz, speaking to his brother Alon, 26, at his funeral in Shefayim, a kibbutz north of Tel Aviv.
He was kidnapped on October 7 and shot dead along with two other hostages as they called for help in Hebrew, waved a white flag and were shirtless for fear of being mistaken for Hamas men. On Sunday evening, the Israeli army published photos that it said it had taken at the site of the tragedy in the Gaza Strip. We see messages written in Hebrew on pieces of white cloth that read: “SOS,” “Help,” or “3 hostages.”
Maintaining “military pressure”
The army said the messages were clearly written with the help of food relief. “According to our on-site investigations, it appears that the three hostages were in the building where these messages were found for a period of time.” Since the announcement of this mistake, and in the face of Israeli anger, the army has continued to communicate and maintain that it has “Lessons learned” from this. However, pressure from relatives of the hostages demanding a resumption of negotiations with Hamas has not abated.
Hundreds of people marched in Tel Aviv on Saturday evening before camping in front of the Defense Ministry to demand the return of their loved ones. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday he was “heartbroken” but wanted to “maintain military pressure” as Hamas made a ceasefire a prerequisite for any agreement.
“Tragic event”
The army said it regretted a “tragic event” that occurred in a part of the Gaza Strip where soldiers faced “great pressure,” “intense fighting” and “numerous ambushes.” However, she spoke of a “violation of the rules of engagement” and an investigation was ongoing. “You survived 70 days in hell,” Alon’s mother Dikla said during her eulogy. “One more moment and you would be in my arms.”
In Hamas's unprecedented attack on Israeli soil on October 7, about 250 people were taken hostage and about 1,140 people were killed, mostly civilians, according to authorities. To date, 129 hostages are still being held in Gaza. In retaliation, Israel vowed to “destroy” Hamas, which is in power in Gaza, and its attacks left 18,800 people dead, mostly women, children and teenagers, according to authorities in the Palestinian Islamist movement.