In addition to the fear of what their relatives, who are in the hands of Hamas, will go through after 71 days of captivity in the Gaza Strip, there is now the fear that their lives will be endangered by those whose mission is to rescue them. The hostages’ families took to the streets of Tel Aviv again this Saturday to demand a change in tactics from the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. They want a ceasefire and new negotiations with the Palestinian terror group to guarantee more releases after three hostages were killed by Israeli soldiers who mistook them for terrorists despite white flags.
Former hostage Raz Ben Ami told the crowd she had warned the war cabinet of the risks. “Ten days ago I warned Cabinet members that the fighting would harm the hostages. Unfortunately I was right. Military action alone will not save their lives. Israel must initiate a new round of negotiations to free the hostages.” he claimed. Netanyahu emphasized this at a press conference later in the day It will be ‘military pressure’ that will allow the release of the hostages, refusing to talk about possible negotiations taking place.
The first round of dialogue facilitated a seven-day ceasefire during which more than a hundred hostages were released – most of them women and children. Reportedly, the head of the Mossad (Israeli Secret Service), David Barnea, has met in Europe with the Prime Minister of Qatar, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, to renegotiate. It was Qatar that brokered the first ceasefire. According to some sources, the release of the older hostages is now being discussed.
white flag
Israeli Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi took responsibility for the deaths of the three hostages in Gaza on Saturday. “The incident involving IDF soldiers [Forças de Defesa de Israel] The accidental killing of Yotam Haim, Alon Shamriz and Samar Talalka is a difficult and painful event,” he said in a video message, recounting how the three hostages survived “70 days of hell” only to be killed by friendly fire .. ‘There is nothing IDF soldiers and commanders in the Gaza Strip want more than to rescue hostages alive’ explained and admitted that they had failed in this case.
“We cannot shoot at those who raise white flags,” Halevi insisted, recalling that “the three hostages did everything possible to make us realize” who they were. Nevertheless, they were mistaken for enemies and shot dead by the army. “I try to put myself in the mind of the soldier in Shejaiya, after days of hard fighting, close encounters, encounters with terrorists dressed in civilian clothes, arriving in various deceptive ways. He must be alert and ready for any threat.” said the Israeli chief of staff.
Another official told reporters in more detail what had happened. The three hostages “emerged tens of meters from one of our positions” in Gaza City’s Shejaiya neighborhood. “They had no T-shirts and had a stick with a white cloth,” he stated, explaining that a soldier saw them and “felt threatened and dismissed.” The soldier said they were “terrorists” and the soldiers “opened fire”, killing two hostages instantly and wounding the third who managed to retreat into the building. The soldiers then heard a cry for help in Hebrew. The battalion commander ordered a ceasefire, but more shots were fired at the third hostage, who was also killed. “This violated our rules of engagement.” indicated.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant also took responsibility. “We were so close to a wonderful success, so close to bringing them home,” he said at a news conference after a meeting of the war cabinet. He also said there is no alternative to paying the price in defending a just cause.
“Fatahstan”
At the same press conference said Netanyahu has made it clear that he will not allow Gaza to change from ‘Hamastan’ to ‘Fatahstan’, with a possible replacement of the terrorist group by the party currently leading the Palestinian Authority.
The Gaza Strip, he emphasized, will be “demilitarized” and the IDF will be responsible for its security, as “no one else can guarantee that there will be a peaceful regime.”
Source: DN
