In the video: IDF Spokesperson: Three Israeli abductees shot dead accidentally/Photo: Report
For some unknown reason, the IDF left the fighting against Shejaiya, one of Hamas' strongest battalions, whose terrorists carried out the massacre in the kibbutzim that suffered severe attacks on October 7, and in which the terrorist organization invested considerable resources and funds in defending itself against Israeli attacks – only for the second part of the fighting. This is in contrast to Operation Protective Edge, in which on the first day of the ground maneuver, the Golani Brigade stormed the battalion – a day in which seven Golani fighters fell in an armored personnel carrier and the fighter Oron Shaul was kidnapped.
This time, the maneuver for Shejaiya included a rolling curtain of fire, which has been going on for 12 days of fighting. Airstrikes and ground attacks that crushed the terrorist infrastructure built by the battalion over some twenty years, and later – a very extensive maneuver of engineering tools to remove mines and IEDs, including the destruction of buildings that posed a threat to the forces. Only afterwards did Merkava tanks and Tiger armored personnel carriers enter, and later also artillery that fired shells directly at terrorists' homes.
The battles in the first phase were very complex, since the terrorists, who were not killed in the attacks in the first two days, retreated and barricaded themselves in the crowded area of the neighborhood. In almost every third house, an observation post, sniping, mortar launch, anti-tank missiles, a war room, weapons depots and military equipment were set up – and underneath them, deep underground, underground shafts.
IDF sources: "Great frustration, commanders in the field declare at every opportunity that the dream is to find abductees" / documentation on social networks according to section 27A of the Copyright Law
On Thursday of this week, the IDF estimated that our forces would need only a few more days of fighting in the area, but this morning there continue to be fierce gun battles. Most of the fighting took place in the battalion's densely populated areas, such as the Kasbah. The fighting is being waged on an extensive intelligence base by Military Intelligence and the Shin Bet, which indicates suspicious structures, shafts and tunnels, military sites, and also on signs that may indicate the presence of abductees in the area.
Commanders on the ground declare at every opportunity: "Everyone's dream is to find abductees and return them safe to Israel," which caused the tragic incident that took place yesterday, in which three abductees were shot dead after being identified as terrorists, to lead to great frustration in the IDF."
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A thorough investigation is underway. IDF Spokesperson Hagari, Last Night/Walla! Editorial Board, Dutz
The incident took place at around 10 a.m., when an IDF force identified three suspicious figures running toward it. As stated, after mistakenly identifying them as terrorists, the force fired at them - and they were killed. Searches he carried out immediately afterwards raised suspicions that one of the dead was an Israeli, and in the first stage, the abducted Yotam Haim was identified, apparently by the tattoos on his body. At that time, it was decided to carry out a very thorough investigation, during which the three bodies were transferred to Israel for examinations, and later the other two abductees, Samer Tlalka and Alon Shamriz, were identified.
Information about the incident was quickly passed on to the division commander and the commander of the Southern Command, who instructed on an in-depth investigation in order to understand the circumstances of the difficult incident, in an area where many clashes have taken place in recent days. Its goal, as expected, is to draw lessons for the continuation of the fighting, with the ultimate goal of preventing similar incidents despite the complexity of fighting in built-up areas.
At this stage, the IDF is having difficulty understanding whether the three abductees managed to take advantage of a moment of weakness on the part of the terrorists at the site where they were being held and escaped from captivity – or whether the terrorists went to defend the site and were killed by IDF fire.
Extensive searches are being conducted to locate the place where the three were held. IDF forces in the Gaza Strip/IDF Spokesperson
Security sources also emphasized that beginning with yesterday's serious incident, the IDF began searching for the place where the three were being held, trying to extract important details from it and perhaps shed light on what happened at the time, to understand where they were held captive and whether there were other abductees alongside them.
IDF sources clarified that the tragic incident caused "great frustration" to the forces, which are busy around the clock locating the abductees, despite the constant effort and the enormous risks taken for this supreme goal, including the lives of combatants. They also said that the incident, which ended with the mistaken identification of the three abductees who fled for their lives from the kidnappers as terrorists, apparently tried to escape to a safe area and then reach the Israeli border.
Another military source stressed that after the location of the abductees and their situation, individual intelligence from the Shin Bet, Mossad, and Military Intelligence is conducted, and the war of minds against time and against Hamas is led by Maj. Gen. (res.) Nitzan Alon, who succeeded in promoting special activity throughout the Gaza Strip in order to solve the great mystery about the location and fate of the abductees.
- More on the subject:
- Gaza War
- Iron Sword War
- Abductees