Could Israel’s Shooting Of 3 Hostages Give The Gaza War A New Direction?

On Friday morning, in broad daylight, three unarmed Israeli hostages – Alon Shamriz, 26, Samer Al-Talalka, 22 and Yotam Haim, 28 – emerged near an Israel Defence Forces (IDF) position in the besieged Gaza Strip, holding a white flag.

One of the soldiers, an anonymous Israeli military official, felt threatened and declared the three men “terrorists” and opened fire in a shocking move. Two got killed immediately. The third sustained injuries and fled to a nearby building.

Shooting Contrary To The IDF’s Rules Of Engagement

The survivor could be heard shouting for help in Hebrew. He later re-emerged and got killed too. A subsequent search of the building revealed banners bearing the messages “Help, 3 hostages” and “SOS”, believed to be written with leftover food.

IDF chief of staff Herzi Halevi described the fatal shooting of the three hostages as contrary to the military’s rules of engagement. They “did everything so that we would understand,” he noted. But he also stressed the need to continue the fighting.

Roughly 120 Israelis are believed to be still in captivity in Gaza, held by Hamas and allied Palestinian groups. They were seized and taken to the enclave during the October 7 Hamas assault that killed around 1,200 people in southern Israel.

In response, Israel has launched a massive operation it says is aimed at destroying Hamas. But the retaliatory strikes have killed more than 18,000 Gazans – including a sizeable number of innocent civilians, according to the local health authorities.

Rising Palestinian Casualties Putting Israel Under Pressure

Since the end of a temporary ceasefire between Israel and Hamas earlier this month, families of the hostages have called on the Israeli government to reach a new truce for at least some of the captives to be freed. The initial deal result in the release of more than 100 hostages.

Read More: Recollecting Moments From Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tarik’s India Trip

But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has deflected the calls, noting the importance of “military pressure” “for the return of the hostages and for victory”. Amid mounting Palestinian casualties, Israeli authorities are now under growing international pressure.