Three hostages were probably killed by mistake in an air strike, an Israeli army investigation confirms

Three Israeli hostages whose bodies were found in underground tunnels in the Gaza Strip last year were likely killed in a military airstrike on a Hamas commander, according to an investigation into their fatalities.

An investigation into the deaths of Nik Beizer, 19, Ron Sherman, 19, and Elia Toledano, 28, found there is a “high probability” that the hostages were killed “as a result of a side effect of an IDF airstrike” on Hamas Northern Brigade commander Ahmed Ghandour, the Israel Defense Forces said on Sunday. The three hostages were being held in a tunnel where Ghandour was operating when the military struck on November 10, the Israel Defense Forces said. Their bodies were found in a Hamas tunnel complex on December 14, and the investigation into their deaths was completed in recent days.

“At the time of the attack, the Israeli forces had no information about the presence of hostages in the attacked complex,” the military said.

The Israel Defense Forces said this was a “high probability” but that it was “not possible to definitively determine the cause of death of the three hostages.” Their assessment is based on a number of factors, including intelligence reports, the location where their bodies were found, an analysis of the attack and conclusions from the Institute of Forensic Medicine.

“The IDF shares the families’ grief over this devastating loss and will continue to support them,” the IDF added.

Both Beizer and Sherman were members of the Israeli military.

Sherman was serving in his first year in the Israeli army and was stationed at a base near a Gaza border crossing when Hamas bombed and attacked soldiers there. Sherman’s mother previously told NBC News that he texted his parents shortly before he was kidnapped in the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, writing in Hebrew: “Mom, I love you.”

The investigation results are a further blow to the Israeli government, which is facing fierce domestic protests against calls for a ceasefire.

Earlier this month, Israeli forces announced that they had found the bodies of six hostages killed by Hamas and returned them to Israel.

Their deaths prompted tens of thousands of Israeli citizens to take to the streets and direct their anger at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Some families of hostages still held captive in Gaza also spoke out against Netanyahu, accusing him of putting his own political agenda above the lives of their loved ones.

An estimated 250 people were kidnapped and taken hostage to the Gaza Strip. More than 100 were released during a short-lived ceasefire agreement in late November last year before the cessation of hostilities deal collapsed.

In the months that followed, some hostages were either rescued or found dead by the military. The Israeli military estimates that 101 hostages are still in the Gaza Strip.