Banners showing Hersh Goldberg-Polin, a 23-year old hostage who died in Hamas captivity in Gaza, hang in Jerusalem. File.
| Photo Credit: AP

The actions of the Israeli military had a “circumstantial influence” on a decision by Hamas militants to kill six hostages in Gaza in August, according to a military investigation published on Tuesday (December 24, 2024).

The recovery in September of the bodies of six Israeli hostages, including American-Israeli Hersh Goldberg-Polin, triggered deep shock in Israel, prompting half a million people to stage street protests demanding the government enter a hostage deal with Hamas.

Also read | Netanyahu tells Israel parliament ‘some progress’ on Gaza hostage deal

The six, seized by Palestinian militants during the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israel, were shot dead 48-72 hours before being found by Israeli forces, according to health ministry estimates.

The hostages were killed by their captors, the investigation found, and that the Israeli military’s activity “in the area, although gradual and cautious, had a circumstantial influence” on the militants’ decision to carry out the killings.

The military had no prior intelligence about the presence of the six hostages in the area, the investigation found.

“The investigation published tonight proves once again that the return of all hostages will only be possible through a deal,” the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said in a statement on Tuesday.

Talks between Israel and Hamas to secure the release of the 100 hostages still being held by Hamas in Gaza are ongoing.

An Israeli negotiation team plans to return to Israel from Qatar on Tuesday evening for “internal consultations” regarding a hostage deal after a significant week of talks about Gaza, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said.

File picture of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who has warned Hamas to release Israeli hostages before he takes office in January 2025
| Photo Credit: via Reuters

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is demanding the immediate release of Israeli hostages still being held in Gaza, saying that if they are not freed before he is sworn into office for a second term there will be “hell to pay”.

“Please let this TRUTH serve to represent that if the hostages are not released prior to January 20, 2025, the date that I proudly assume Office as President of the United States, there will be ALL HELL TO PAY in the Middle East, and for those in charge who perpetrated these atrocities against Humanity,” Mr. Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social site.

He added that, “Those responsible will be hit harder than anybody has been hit in the long and storied History of the United States of America. RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW!”

It was not immediately clear whether Mr. Trump was threatening to directly involve the U.S. military in Israel’s ongoing campaign against Hamas in Gaza. Mr. Trump’s allies have said he hopes there will be a ceasefire and hostage release deal before he returns to office early next year.

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office declined comment. But the country’s president, Isaac Herzog, welcomed Mr. Trump’s comments in a social media post.

“Thank you and bless you Mr. President-elect @realDonaldTrump,” he wrote on X. “We all pray for the moment we see our sisters and brothers back home!”

Death of U.S.-Israeli citizen

The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 250 people hostage on October 7, 2023. Some 100 are still held inside Gaza, around two-thirds believed to be alive.

Mr. Trump’s threat came hours after the Israeli government confirmed the death of Omer Neutra, a dual U.S.-Israeli citizen, whose body is still believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza, according to the Israeli government.

Days earlier, Hamas released a hostage video of Edan Alexander, who was serving in the Israeli military when he was taken by Hamas to Gaza. Filmed under apparent duress, Mr. Alexander calls on Mr. Trump to work to negotiate for his freedom and that of the remaining Hamas hostages.

The Biden administration is mounting a last-ditch effort to try to restart talks between Israel and Hamas now that it has brokered a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. But the administration has said that Hamas has yet to show a willingness to reengage in negotiations and that the group isn’t concerned for its own lives or the lives of Gaza civilians.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive for the attack has left at least 44,429 Palestinians dead, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The war has destroyed vast areas of the coastal enclave and displaced 90% of its population of 2.3 million people — often multiple times.