{{Short description|2023 friendly fire incident}} {{protection padlock|small=yes}} {{Infobox civilian attack | title = Killing of Alon Shamriz, Yotam Haim, and Samer Talalka | location = Shuja'iyya, Gaza Strip | date = {{start date and age|2023|12|15|df=y}} | partof = the Battle of Shuja'iyya during the Gaza war | image = Help 3 Hostages 01.jpg | caption = Cloth that the three hostages wrote on in Hebrew using spices: "Rescue 3 abductees"; displayed as part of the "Through Their Eyes" exhibition in Kfar Aza. | map = | map_size = | map_alt = | map_caption = | native_name = | native_name_lang = he | coordinates = | time = | timezone = | target = | type = Friendly fire | weapons = | fatalities = 3 Israeli hostages | injuries = | perpetrator = {{flagicon image|Flag of the Israel Defense Forces.svg}} Israel Defense Forces | motive = | notes = }}
On 15 December 2023, three Israeli hostages were killed by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) during the Battle of Shuja'iyya in the Gaza Strip. The men had emerged from a building and were approaching a group of IDF soldiers when they were shot dead, in spite of the fact that they were shirtless and visibly unarmed while waving a makeshift white flag and calling out for help in Hebrew.<ref name="BBC">{{cite news |last1=Bachega |first1=Hugo |title=Israel Gaza: Hostages were carrying white cloth when shot, IDF says |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67738111 |access-date=16 December 2023 |agency=BBC |date=16 December 2023}}</ref>
The incident provoked widespread domestic and international criticism of the IDF and of the Israeli government's attempts to resolve the hostage crisis through war.<ref name="Barnea" /> It also led to increased condemnation from abroad of the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip.<ref name="NYT" /><ref name="NYT2" /> The IDF acknowledged that the three hostages, who were kidnapped by Hamas during the 7 October attacks, had been killed after they were "mistakenly identified as a threat", prompting renewed protests in Israel against the incumbent Netanyahu-led government.
The killing of the hostages in Shuja'iyya marks one of many Israeli friendly fire incidents since the beginning of the Gaza war.
==Overview==
=== Involved parties === The three hostages killed by the IDF were identified as '''Yotam Haim''' ({{lang|he|Hebrew: יותם חיים|rtl=no}}; age 28), '''Alon Shamriz''' ({{lang|he|Hebrew: אלון שמריז|rtl=no}}; age 26), and '''Samer Talalka''' ({{lang|he|Hebrew: סאמר טלאלקה|rtl=no}}; {{langx|ar|سامر تلالكا}}; age 24). Haim and Shamriz were kidnapped from the Kfar Aza kibbutz, and Talalka was kidnapped from the Nir Am kibbutz. All three men had been kidnapped during the October 7 attacks.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |date=2023-12-15 |title=Cousin of NBC6 reporter's husband among 3 hostages mistakenly killed in Gaza |url=https://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/cousin-of-nbc6-reporters-husband-among-3-hostages-mistakenly-killed-in-gaza/3185276/ |access-date=2023-12-17 |website=NBC 6 South Florida |language=en-US}}</ref> Haim was a drummer for a heavy metal band,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Spiro |first=Amy |date=18 December 2023 |title='You wouldn't sit and wait': Family mourns Yotam Haim, hostage mistakenly slain by IDF |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/you-wouldnt-sit-and-wait-family-mourns-yotam-haim-hostage-mistakenly-slain-by-idf/ |access-date=18 December 2023 |website=The Times of Israel}}</ref> Shamriz was a computer engineering student at Sapir College.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Spiro |first=Amy |date=17 December 2023 |title=Family mourns hostage Alon Shamriz killed by IDF in error, blames government for death |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/family-mourns-hostage-alon-shamriz-killed-by-idf-in-error-blames-government-for-death/ |access-date=18 December 2023 |website=The Times of Israel}}</ref> Talalka had been working in the kibbutz hatchery and was from the Bedouin town of Hura.<ref>{{Cite web |date=17 December 2023 |title=Hostage Samar Talalka, mistakenly killed by IDF, buried; no government reps on hand |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/hostage-samar-talalka-mistakenly-killed-by-idf-buried-no-government-reps-on-hand/ |access-date=18 December 2023 |website=The Times of Israel}}</ref>
After the deaths of the three hostages, a GoPro camera from a deceased military dog was discovered to have recorded their voices several days earlier. The dog was involved with a military exchange between Israel and Hamas, near to where they were held although it was undisclosed what they were recorded speaking about. It has been inferred that the militants holding them were killed in the fighting and allowed the men to escape.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Pokharel |first=Sugam |date=2023-12-21 |title=Israeli military dog captured hostages' voices on camera days before they were killed by friendly fire |url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/21/world/israel-hostages-camera-dog-intl-hnk/index.html |access-date=2024-01-18 |website=CNN |language=en}}</ref>
=== Events === According to an IDF official, the three male hostages emerged shirtless out of a building toward a group of IDF soldiers "tens of meters" away, with one carrying a white flag.<ref>{{cite news |title=Israeli captives mistakenly killed in Gaza held white flag, official says |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/12/16/israeli-hostages-mistakenly-killed-in-gaza-were-had-a-white-flag-official |access-date=17 December 2023 |publisher=Al Jazeera |date=16 December 2023}}</ref> An Israeli sniper then opened fire on them, killing Shamriz and Talalka and wounding Haim. After being shot, Haim ran into a nearby building and shouted for help in Hebrew. The battalion commander then ordered the troops to hold their fire, while Haim was persuaded to exit the building but when he did so 15 minutes later,<ref>Sebastian Ben Daniel,[https://www.972mag.com/three-hostages-killed-gaza-israeli-soldiers/ 'The ‘mistaken’ killing of three Israeli hostages was a tragedy long foretold,'] +972 magazine 9 January 2024.</ref> a soldier acting against the battalion commander's order shot and killed him.<ref name=probe>[https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/idf-probe-reportedly-reveals-soldiers-who-shot-dead-hostages-werent-briefed-on-hebrew-sign-spotted-ahead-of-time/ IDF probe reportedly reveals soldiers who shot dead hostages weren’t briefed on Hebrew sign spotted ahead of time]</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Lubell |first1=Maayan |title=Israeli hostages killed in Gaza were holding white flag, official says |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israeli-hostages-killed-mistakenly-gaza-were-holding-white-flag-official-says-2023-12-16/ |access-date=16 December 2023 |work=Reuters |date=16 December 2023}}</ref>
''Haaretz'' reported that the IDF soldiers followed the third hostage into the building and shot him dead because: "they believed that it was a Hamas terrorist attempting to lure them into a trap".<ref name=":0">{{cite news |last1=Kubovich |first1=Yaniv |date=December 16, 2023 |title=Preliminary IDF Report: Hostages Killed by Soldiers Waved White Flag, One Yelled for Help in Hebrew |work=Haaretz |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2023-12-16/ty-article/.premium/preliminary-idf-report-hostages-killed-by-soldiers-waved-white-flag-yelled-help-hebrew/0000018c-7283-db38-a9fc-fba363100000 |access-date=December 17, 2023 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20231216224726/https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2023-12-16/ty-article/.premium/preliminary-idf-report-hostages-killed-by-soldiers-waved-white-flag-yelled-help-hebrew/0000018c-7283-db38-a9fc-fba363100000 |archive-date=December 16, 2023}}</ref> ''Yediot Ahronot'' reported that Israeli soldiers had called for the third hostage to come out of the building he was hiding in, and then shot him when he reappeared.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Jobain |first1=Najib |last2=Frankel |first2=Julia |last3=Magdy |first3=Samy |date=December 17, 2023 |title=Netanyahu says Israel is as 'committed as ever' to war after soldiers mistakenly killed 3 hostages |work=Associated Press |url=https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-news-12-16-2023-7df1ec6f336d1cd357903d6b848a1a1a |access-date=December 17, 2023}}</ref> The soldiers became suspicious upon retrieving the bodies for they had identifying marks suggesting that they were indeed Israeli hostages who had managed to evade their captors.<ref name=":0" /> The hostages were identified after their bodies were returned to Israel.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Tabachnick |first1=Cara |title=3 hostages in Gaza were killed by friendly fire, Israeli military says - CBS News |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/3-hostages-in-gaza-killed-by-friendly-fire-israeli-military-says/ |access-date=15 December 2023 |work=www.cbsnews.com |date=15 December 2023}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{cite news |title=Israel-Hamas war live updates: IDF says it mistakenly killed 3 Israeli hostages during fighting |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/live-blog/israel-hamas-war-live-updates-rcna129901 |access-date=15 December 2023 |work=NBC News |date=15 December 2023 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-troops-mistakenly-open-fire-and-kill-3-hostages-in-northern-gaza-battlefield/|title=IDF troops mistakenly open fire and kill 3 hostages in northern Gaza battlefield|publisher=Times of Israel|date=15 December 2023|first=Emmanual|last=Fabian}}</ref>
In days prior to the incident, soldiers had noticed the building the hostages were hiding in, 200 meters from where they would be eventually shot, had fabric signs reading "SOS" and "Help, Three hostages" hanging out of the windows. The letters were written on the fabric with leftover food.<ref>{{cite news |title=Israel Gaza: Hostages shot by IDF put out 'SOS' sign written with leftover food |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67745092 |access-date=17 December 2023 |publisher=BBC |date=17 December 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Lubell |first1=Mayaan |title=S.O.S. signs found on killed hostages hideout, Israeli military says |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/sos-signs-found-killed-hostages-hideout-israeli-military-says-2023-12-17/ |access-date=17 December 2023 |work=Reuters |date=17 December 2023}}</ref> The IDF had marked the house as a possible trap.<ref name=":0" /> An investigation determined that when the unit which found the signs was redeployed from the area, it did not brief the battalion replacing them, whose troops were responsible for the incident, about the signs.<ref name=probe/>
On 4 March 2024, Israeli broadcaster Kan 11 released an audio recording of the incident.<ref>{{cite news |title=Audio recording shows Israeli hostages' calls for help before being shot by Israeli soldiers |url=https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20240304-audio-recording-shows-israeli-hostages-calls-for-help-before-being-shot-by-israeli-soldiers/ |access-date=14 March 2024 |agency=Middle East Monitor |date=4 March 2024}}</ref>
==Investigations== According to ''The Jerusalem Post'', a preliminary investigation found IDF instructions to soldiers in Shuja'iyya were to open fire on any man of fighting age who approached them.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Bohbot |first1=Amir |title=IDF troops who killed hostages told to shoot fighting-age men in Gaza - report |url=https://www.jpost.com/israel-hamas-war/article-778896 |website=The Jerusalem Post |date=25 December 2023 |access-date=27 December 2023}}</ref>
Following an investigation, the IDF stated the killings were preventable, but disciplinary actions were not needed since there was "no malice" on the part of the soldiers.<ref>{{cite web |title=Israel to take no action against soldiers who killed three Israeli captives in Gaza |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2023/12/29/israel-hamas-war-live-israel-kills-at-least-20-in-attack-on-rafah?update=2585357 |website=Al Jazeera |access-date=29 December 2023}}</ref>
==Reactions==
=== Israeli public === The mother of one of the deceased hostages sent a message to the unit involved in the shooting, stating she considered the incident not to be the soldiers' fault. She told the unit she instead placed the blame of her son's death on Hamas, adding: "may their name and memory be wiped off the face of the Earth".<ref name=":1" /> On the contrary, the father of one of the hostages stated: "The shooter should not have opened fire, and if he is a proper fighter, he should have known that you only pull the trigger once you are certain it is a terrorist".<ref name=":1" /> Despite this, he noted that Israeli troops: "have encountered different situations where [Hamas] tried to ambush them and they suffered losses".<ref name=":1" />
Protests broke out outside the IDF headquarters in Tel Aviv following the news, calling for a negotiated end to the hostage crisis.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Barber |first1=Harriet |title=Hostages mistakenly shot dead by Israeli troops 'were waving white flag' |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2023/12/16/protests-tel-aviv-israeli-troops-kill-hostages-mistake/ |access-date=16 December 2023 |publisher=Telegraph |date=16 December 2023}}</ref> Open University of Israel professor Yagil Levy said there was "a real gap between the formal rules of engagement and the practice on the battlefield",<ref name="NYT2" /> and Israeli journalist Nahum Barnea called the incident a war crime.<ref name="Barnea">{{cite news |last1=Barnea |first1=Nahum |title=בשג'אעיה זו לא הייתה רק טרגדיה |url=https://www.ynet.co.il/news/article/yokra13720297 |access-date=17 December 2023 |publisher=Ynet |date=16 December 2023}}</ref> Pro-Palestinian voices and critics of the IDF said that the incident demonstrated the Israeli military's indiscriminate use of force on civilians,<ref name="NYT2">{{cite news |last1=Erlanger |first1=Steven |title=Hostage Deaths Fuel Israelis' Doubts About Netanyahu |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/17/world/middleeast/netanyahu-israel-gaza-hostages-politics.html |access-date=17 December 2023 |newspaper=The New York Times |date=16 December 2023}}</ref> seeing the soldiers as having mistaken the surrendering Israeli hostages for surrendering Palestinians. Sari Bashi, program director at Human Rights Watch (HRW), stated that "nobody batted an eye before killing them", and that this case only came under investigation as the deceased turned out to be Israeli.<ref name="NYT" /> Roy Yellin of B'Tselem stated that his group had documented "countless incidents of people who clearly surrendered and who were still shot" and that the incident came after "a long trend of" escalating Israeli violence that went largely unpunished.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Goldenberg |first1=Tia |title=In Israel's killing of 3 hostages, some see the same excessive force directed at Palestinians |url=https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/israels-killing-3-hostages-same-excessive-force-directed-105732695 |access-date=18 December 2023 |agency=Associated Press |website=ABC News |date=17 December 2023}}</ref>
===Israeli military and government=== [[File:Isaac Herzog in Beit HaNassi, April 2024 (KBG GPO9001).jpg|thumb|Israeli President Isaac Herzog with the deceased hostages' families during a memorial ceremony in April 2024.]]Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered condolences to the families of the victims, while Defense Minister Yoav Gallant called the killings "a painful incident for every Israeli".<ref name="CNN">{{cite news |last1=Michaelis |first1=Tamar |title=What we know about the killing of 3 Israeli hostages by the IDF |url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/16/middleeast/what-we-know-hostages-killed-israel-gaza/index.html |access-date=16 December 2023 |website=CNN |date=16 December 2023}}</ref> Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi stated that the shooting was against the IDF's rules of engagement and that the hostages had "done everything to show that they were harmless", including removing shirts to show that they were not carrying explosives.<ref name="NYT">{{cite news |last1=Boxerman |first1=Aaron |last2=Hubbard |first2=Ben |last3=Fuller |first3=Thomas |title=Israel Says 3 Hostages Bore White Flag Before Being Killed by Troops |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/16/world/middleeast/israel-hostage-killings-gaza.html |access-date=17 December 2023 |newspaper=The New York Times |date=16 December 2023}}</ref> The following day, the IDF posted a video of him speaking to the 99th Division of the IDF, reminding them to not shoot surrendering Gazans but to take them as prisoners of war (POWs).<ref>{{cite news |last1=Fabian |first1=Emanuel |title=After mistaken killing of hostages, Halevi says IDF 'doesn't shoot a person who raises his hands' |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/after-mistaken-killing-of-hostages-halevi-says-idf-doesnt-shoot-a-person-who-raises-his-hands/ |access-date=17 December 2023 |newspaper=The Times of Israel |date=16 December 2023}}</ref> Social media users pointed out that soldiers in the background of the video appeared nonchalant or were even laughing.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Ettinger |first1=Marlon |title='Can't get through the pep talk without cheeky grins': Video of IDF soldiers chuckling at hostage shooting briefing prompts outrage |url=https://www.dailydot.com/debug/israeli-hostage-shooting-idf-video/ |date=18 December 2023|access-date=18 December 2023|website=Daily Dot}}</ref>
On 15 December, the IDF stated that during operations in Shuja'iyya, they "mistakenly identified three Israeli hostages as a threat" and killed them with friendly fire.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Tabachnick |first1=Cara |title=3 hostages in Gaza were killed by friendly fire, Israeli military says |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/3-hostages-in-gaza-killed-by-friendly-fire-israeli-military-says/ |access-date=15 December 2023 |work=CBS News |date=15 December 2023}}</ref> A senior IDF officer stated that:<blockquote>"We have heard such screams from places in the past, and then there was fighting, after the alert turned out to be an attempt to draw IDF forces to a building and then open fire on them. Unfortunately, we thought it was such an incident."<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-12-16 |title=האסון בשג'אעיה: החטופים הניפו בד לבן וצעקו "הצילו", הלוחמים ירו בניגוד להוראות - וואלה! חדשות |url=https://news.walla.co.il/item/3629147 |access-date=2023-12-17 |website=וואלה! |language=he}}</ref></blockquote>When asked if the soldiers involved in the killing of the three hostages will be pulled from service, IDF spokesperson Lt. Col. Richard Hecht stated that they will be "supported in every way possible" as the incident was "terrible and tragic mistake".<ref>{{cite news |title=Gaza: 'We're going to hug' soldiers who shot hostages says IDF spokesman |url=https://news.sky.com/video/gaza-were-going-to-hug-soldiers-who-shot-hostages-says-idf-spokesman-13031702 |website=Sky News}}</ref> IDF spokesperson Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus stated that no disciplinary action would be taken against the soldiers, and that there would be no change to IDF ground operations as a result of the killing.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sforza |first=Lauren |date=2023-12-19 |title=IDF spokesperson says no changes on ground after hostages mistakenly killed |url=https://thehill.com/policy/international/4366786-idf-spokesperson-says-no-changes-on-ground-after-hostages-mistakenly-killed/ |access-date=2023-12-19 |website=The Hill |language=en-US}}</ref>
==Depictions== In November 2025, ''Stay Forte'', a film chronicling the story of the three hostages was released. Doron Eran directed the project, with Tomer Machloof playing Alon, Shahar Tavoch as Yotam Haim and Wael Hamdun as Samer Talalka, with American actors Judd Hirsch and Selma Blair as part of the cast.<ref>[https://www.israelhayom.co.il/culture/films/article/19107050 "A Shocking Film": The Story of the Three Hostages Accidentally Killed by IDF Soldiers Comes to Theaters] ''Israel Hayom''. Retrieved on 29 October 2025</ref>
== See also == {{Portal|Israel|Palestine|Politics|Crime|2020s }}
* Killing of David Ben Avraham * Killing of Nahida and Samar Anton * Executions and assassinations during the Gaza war * Timeline of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict in 2023 * Timeline of the Gaza war (24 November 2023 – 11 January 2024) * Israeli war crimes in the Gaza war * Gaza genocide
==References== {{reflist}}
{{Gaza war}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shamriz, Alon; Haim, Yotam; Talalka, Samer}} Category:Military scandals Category:Friendly fire incidents Category:December 2023 in Israel Category:2023 in the Gaza Strip Category:Civilians killed in the Gaza war Category:Deaths by firearm in the Gaza Strip Category:Israeli war crimes in the Gaza war Category:Extrajudicial killings by the Israeli military Category:Gaza City in the Gaza war Category:Shuja'iyya Category:Deaths by person in Palestine Category:Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip Category:Hostages and abductees in the October 7 attacks