An analysis from the New York Times shows that many were killed by Israeli bombing and friendly fire during military operations after Netanyahu refused to reach a ceasefire with Hamas to end the war
News Desk - The Cradle
The NYT reviewed forensic reports and military investigations into their deaths, as well as interviews with more than a dozen Israeli soldiers and officials, a senior regional official, and seven relatives of captives.
Of the 59 captives still held by Hamas and other Palestinian resistance groups in Gaza, the Israel government has said that only 24 remain alive. One hundred and thirty others have been released alive, while the corpses of 40 others have been returned to Israel in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and detainees following ceasefire agreements in November 2023 and January of this year.
Many have died due to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's preference to continue his genocidal war on Gaza, which has killed over 50,000 Palestinians, the majority women and children, rather than reach a deal for a permanent end to the war.
"We could have brought home more hostages — earlier and for a smaller price," Yoav Gallant, Israel's defense minister until November, said in a televised interview last month.
YNet says Netanyahu, Smotrich, Ben Gvir are waiting for the hostages to die. The issue of the hostages in Gaza will be solved 'naturally and tragically.
They will then use these deaths as further pretext to permanently occupy and establish Jewish settlements in Gaza, YNet says.… pic.twitter.com/9ISDHaNzn3
— William Van Wagenen (@WVanwagenen) November 9, 2024
"Only continued military pressure, until total victory, will bring about the release of all of our hostages," Netanyahu claimed last year.
Israeli media has reported multiple times since the start of the war that Netanyahu was committed to sabotaging a deal that would end the war and bring the Israeli captives home. Netanyahu and members of his governing coalition wish to expel Gaza's more than 2 million residents, annex the strip, and build Jewish settlements atop the ruins of Palestinians' destroyed homes.
The NYT reports that seven captives were executed by their captors as Israeli soldiers drew near during miltary operations, and four others died in Israeli airstrikes, according to Israeli officials and the public findings of military investigations.
Three captives were killed by Israeli soldiers who mistook them for Palestinian resistance fighters, the Israeli military said. One captive was shot dead in the crossfire during military operations. The NYT says the circumstances surrounding the deaths of 26 others remain inconclusive.
"Maayan Sherman and the mother of another soldier, Nik Beizer, the same age and killed at the same time, began their own investigation. They called the families of other hostages, scanned Hamas social media and peppered Israeli officials with questions. Their persistence took… pic.twitter.com/VeRrlRnPAH
— TheMuslimLawyer (@faisalkutty) May 1, 2024
In one prominent case, the mother of Ron Sherman, an Israeli captive taken by Hamas on 7 October, said that the Israeli military deliberately killed her son.
The army retrieved Ron's body and the bodies of two other captives from a tunnel in Gaza on 14 December. Israel claimed Hamas had murdered all three.
But in a post on Facebook, Maayan Sherman said that her son "was indeed murdered … [But] not by Hamas ... not an accidental shooting, not in the crossfire. It was premeditated murder. Bombs with poisonous gases ... They found that Ron also had several crushed fingers, apparently due to his desperate attempts to get out of the poison grave."
Maayan made the claim after it was presented to her as a possibility by an army delegation that visited her home. The delegation included soldiers from the 551st Brigade who recovered Ron's body. During the visit, the results of the pathological report were presented to the family.
"The members of the delegation told us that they do not rule out gas poisoning due to the IDF bombings, but they are not sure, and they do not know the cause of death," she said.
One indication Ron was killed by poison gas is that when his body was found, "There [were] no fractures, no gunshot wounds, not even dry blows," Maayan said. However, she was told "the issue is closed" and that the army would not investigate the matter further.
Israeli commander says he deliberately tried to kill captured Israelis because “it’s better to stop the kidnapping” than leave his compatriots alive in the hands of Hamas.
The obvious conclusion—only Hamas wants the hostages alive. Israel wants them dead.pic.twitter.com/PPOQgXXKHV
— Wyatt Reed (@wyattreed13) March 29, 2024
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