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Israeli army ‘deliberately bombed’ site to kill captives, Qassam Brigades say
The Israeli army "deliberately" targeted a location in Gaza where Israeli captives were held, Hamas' armed wing, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, has said.
The group said the army repeatedly bombed the site to ensure their death.
"We have intelligence confirming that the enemy deliberately bombed the location with the aim of killing the prisoners and their guards," Abu Obeida, the spokesperson for the group, announced the bombing on Telegram:
The group shared a video showing the targeted location and a person without clarifying whether they were killed or injured. The video included a statement: "Netanyahu and [Chief of General Staff Herzi] Halevi seek to get rid of their prisoners in Gaza by all means."
The spokesperson said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is wanted by the ICC in connection to alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza, his government and the Israeli army are "fully responsible" for the assault and the lives of the captives.
Out of the 251 captives taken during the 7 October attack, Israel estimates that 101 remain.
To date, 117 captives have been released to Israel, with 105 released in a prisoner exchange deal. Four were released by Hamas, and the Israeli army found eight.
Israel has killed captives earlier in the war, with the state failing to disclose its army had "mistakenly" killed three captives in Gaza in December. Another investigation revealed the bodies of five captives recovered were likely killed by Israeli bombing as well.
A report by Haaretz in July revealed that the army ordered the "Hannibal Directive" on 7 October -- a controversial Israeli military protocol which instructs soldiers to kill captives and their captors to stop enemies from using Israeli citizens as bargaining chips.
There have also been calls for the Netanyahu government to secure a ceasefire deal so captives could be released, but the leader's reluctance to halt the war has resulted in several ceasefire deals failing.
Relatives of Israeli captives have been among the thousands of protesters demanding that their government secure a deal and have all the remaining captives released.