3 hostages mistakenly killed by troops had been holding a white flag, Israeli military official says

Three Israeli hostages were mistakenly shot by Israeli troops in the Gaza Strip. They were waving a white flag and were shirtless when they were killed.

The mistaken killings have increased pressure on the Israeli government to renew Qatar-mediated negotiations with Hamas over swapping more captives for Palestinians imprisoned in Israel.

Hamas has conditioned further releases on Israel halting its punishing air and ground campaign in Gaza, which has been ongoing for 11 weeks.

The Israeli military official stated that the soldiers’ behavior was “against our rules of engagement” and that it was being investigated at the highest level.

The three hostages had emerged from a building close to Israeli soldiers’ positions. Two were killed immediately, and the third ran back into the building screaming for help in Hebrew. The commander issued an order to cease fire, but another burst of gunfire killed the third man.

Hamas had previously released over 100 hostages for Palestinian prisoners during a brief cease-fire, but talks on further swaps broke down, with Hamas seeking the release of more veteran prisoners for female soldiers it is holding.

The offensive in Gaza has resulted in significant casualties, with over 18,700 Palestinians killed. It has also displaced a large portion of the population and created a humanitarian crisis.

The United States has expressed unease over civilian casualties but continues to support Israel with weapons shipments and diplomatic backing. U.S. officials are discussing a timetable for winding down the combat phase of the war.