IDF: Hostage Yossi Sharabi was likely killed as a result of IDF strike
Army says captive, whose death was announced last month, may have died when forces struck a building, which caused the collapse of the adjacent structure where Sharabi was held
The IDF has presented its investigation into the death of hostage Yossi Sharabi in the Gaza Strip to his family. According to the IDF’s probe, Sharabi was likely inadvertently killed as a result of an IDF strike.
Sharabi is believed to have been in a building that collapsed after an adjacent building was hit by the military. The building that was struck was hit according to the IDF’s protocols, the probe finds.
The deaths of hostages Sharabi, 53, and Itay Svirsky, 38, were announced by officials in mid-January.
Still, the IDF investigation found that it cannot entirely rule out the possibility that Sharabi was murdered by his captors.
The probe said the IDF had intelligence information that an attack against troops was planned from the building.
The IDF said it has drawn lessons from the incident and will implement them in future strikes.
In the same building where Sharabi was killed, two more hostages were held by Hamas — Svirsky and Noa Argamani, 26.
The IDF still assesses that Svirsky was killed later by Hamas terrorists, and did not die in another strike as the terror group has claimed.
Argamani is believed by the IDF to be alive.
Sharabi’s and Svirsky’s bodies remain held in Gaza.
IDF spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari had previously said Hamas’s claim that the military targeted a building where the three hostages were being held, killing two of them, was a lie. However, he indicated that it was possible that the hostages were located close to a building that was targeted by the IDF.
Kibbutz Be’eri said in January that Sharabi, who was a resident, was “the most loving and devoted father and husband, a family man with a big heart. A man who loves people, was caring and known for his dedication to all those around him, and was always full of joie de vivre.”
It described him as a fan of soccer teams Maccabi Tel Aviv, Spanish club Real Madrid and the UK’s Manchester United. In recent years, he also developed a passion for surfing.
