[sureLoss]

IDF accidentally kills 3 hostages:

https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/15/middl...aza/index.html

Israeli soldiers shot and killed three Israeli hostages in northern Gaza who had been misidentified as a threat, the Israel Defense Forces said.

“During combat in Shejaiya, the IDF mistakenly identified three Israeli hostages as a threat. As a result, the troops fired toward them and they were killed,” IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari said in a news briefing on Friday.

“During searches and checks in the area in which the incident occurred, a suspicion arose over the identities of the deceased,” Hagari added. “Their bodies were transferred to Israeli territory for examination, after which it was confirmed that they were three Israeli hostages.”

The hostages have been identified as Yotam Haim, who was kidnapped from Kibbutz Kfar Aza by Hamas on October 7; Samer Talalka, who was kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Am on the same day; and another male hostage, whose family requested that his name not be published.

The IDF began reviewing the incident immediately, Hagari said.

Hagari said the IDF believes the three men either escaped their captors or had been “left behind” because of the fighting in the area.