Israeli hostages mistakenly killed in Gaza held up white flag: official

Three Israeli hostages killed mistakenly in Gaza by Israeli forces had been holding up a white flag, according to an initial inquiry into the incident, a military official has said.

A soldier saw the hostages emerging tens of metres from Israeli forces in the area of Shejaiya, the official said on Saturday.

"They're all without shirts and they have a stick with a white cloth on it. The soldier feels threatened and opens fire. He declares that they're terrorists, they (forces) open fire, and two are killed immediately," said the military official.

The third hostage was wounded and retreated into a nearby building where he called for help in Hebrew, the official said.

"Immediately the battalion commander issues a ceasefire order, but again there's another burst of fire towards the third figure and he also dies," said the official. "This was against our rules of engagement," he added.

The military on Friday identified the three hostages as Yotam Haim, Alon Shamriz, and Samer Talalka, all taken by Hamas on October 7.