The Israeli military (IDF) is to investigate the deaths of 12 Israeli hostages. They were killed after a house they were held captive in by Hamas fighters was bombed by Israeli forces, reports the Haaretz newspaper. The attack took place at the Be’eri kibbutz in southern Israel, not too far from Gaza. According to Haaretz, Hamas fighters are said to have killed around 130 people at the kibbutz. They also reportedly captured 14 Israelis in one of the houses, which led to fierce battles with Israeli forces. At the end of an hour-long battle between Hamas fighters and Israeli forces, only two Israeli hostages survived. Photo: Tsafrir Abayov / AP The two Israeli survivors of the bombing have said that Israeli tanks fired at the house they were staying in. Now those who gave the orders for the attack have been called in for questioning by the IDF. The Israeli army has also previously been criticized for killing its own. Last December, three Israeli hostages escaping from Hamas were killed, after the IDF mistakenly identified the three hostages as a threat. 18-year-old Ofir Engel was held hostage by Hamas. He was one of several taken from the Be’eri kibbutz on October 7. Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg / AP Have demanded an investigation The family of those who were killed in Be’eri have previously demanded answers to why Israeli forces fired at houses with Israeli civilians. Survivors of the October 7 attack have said that several of the nearly 1,200 victims were killed when Israeli forces attacked houses where Hamas soldiers were holding Israeli hostages. Israel’s Channel 12 News has also shown footage of an Israeli tank firing grenades at a house in the kibbutz. Israeli General Barak Hiram confirmed last December that he ordered the attack, knowing that there were Israeli civilians in the house. In a letter to Israel’s defense chief Herzi Halevi, survivors have demanded a “comprehensive and open investigation” into the decision to attack a house where Israeli civilians were held captive, writes Haaretz. Relatives of the hostages in Gaza block the way into the Ministry of Defense in Tel Aviv, 29 January 2024. Photo: AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP Disagreement about the way forward There have been several demonstrations recently for the government of the country to do more to get the hostages free . It is believed that there are still 132 hostages left in Gaza, but several also fear that more of them will have been killed in the fighting that has ravaged the area in recent months. At the same time, several have also wanted the Israeli soldiers to be withdrawn from Gaza. More than 225 Israeli soldiers are said to have been killed, according to The Times of Israel, since Israel began its ground operation in Gaza as a result of the Hamas attack on October 7. On the other hand, more than 27,000 Palestinians have been killed, more than half of whom will be women and children. Several top politicians in Israel have previously advocated that Israeli forces can remain in Gaza for many decades, including former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett. Now the Israeli prime minister is hinting at a timetable for the way forward. – This war will take months, not years. The goal is complete victory over Hamas, says Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Photo: AP Netanyahu: – We want to kill the leadership of Hamas In an internal party meeting, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that the ongoing war can only end when they have removed Hamas’s ability to attack Israel. – This war will take months, not years. The goal is complete victory over Hamas. We want to kill the leadership of Hamas, says the Israeli Prime Minister. – That is why we must continue to operate in all areas of the Gaza Strip. We must not end the war until then.
ttn-69
The IDF will investigate claims that they themselves killed Israeli hostages – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
