Most captives killed by Israeli strikes in Gaza, says former commander
A former Israeli commander has disclosed that the majority of Israeli captives in Gaza were killed when Israeli forces struck northern Gaza without confirming their locations.
Nitzan Alon, a former commander in an Israeli unit tasked with tracking captives, revealed on Tuesday that “Israeli fire killed most of the captives in Jabalia due to intelligence gaps.”
Many captives who had arrived alive in Gaza were killed in strikes targeting the buildings where they were held, he said.
In one incident in December 2023, three captives died because of “incorrect assumptions on the ground,” Alon said, though he did not provide further details.
He added that at least one captive was killed in a strike on a structure that Israeli forces knew was being used to hold captives. Alon did not provide a total number of captives killed by Israeli strikes during the genocidal campaign in Gaza.
He also highlighted the psychological toll of the strikes, stating, “The fear caused by our airstrikes was repeatedly mentioned in the captives’ testimonies.”
The Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas, repeatedly released videos showing Israeli captives pleading with prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his cabinet to stop attacks that endangered their lives. Despite these appeals, Israel continued its attacks.
Regarding protests by families of Israeli captives, Alon said that neither Netanyahu’s cabinet nor the United States gave them significant weight in ceasefire negotiations, noting that “they had much less impact than many claimed.”
The Gaza ceasefire between Hamas and Israel took effect on October 11. In exchange for the return of all Israeli captives, whether dead or alive, the Israeli regime agreed to release 250 Palestinians serving life sentences and 1,700 abductees from Gaza who had been seized since October 7, 2023.
The regime also pledged to halt its military assault and reopen all crossings into Gaza to allow unrestricted access to food and safe movement for civilians, but it has continued to violate this commitment.
Hamas has said it has met its obligations and is ready to move forward with the second phase, but Israel claims, without presenting evidence, that the body of one deceased captive remains in Gaza, blocking further progress.
Since the start of Israel’s offensive on October 7, 2023, the Gaza Health Ministry reports that more than 70,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 171,000 wounded, the majority women and children, highlighting the devastating toll of the regime’s strikes.
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