Israel: Hostages found dead in tunnel were ‘brutally murdered’ by Hamas

Israeli forces in the process of extracting and identifying the bodies

Six Israeli hostages were found dead by Israeli special forces in a tunnel in Gaza on Saturday. 
The bodies of  Ori Danino, Alex Lobanov, Almog Sarusi, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Carmel Gat, and Eden Yerushalmi, were discovered by IDF and Shin Bet intelligence agency forces in a tunnel in the southernmost city of Rafah on Saturday.
IDF Spokesperson Daniel Hagari said the hostages were “brutally murdered by Hamas terrorists shortly before we reached them.”
The six hostages were all kidnapped alive on October 7 and were found roughly one kilometer from the tunnel from where Qaid Al-Alkadi, another hostage, was found earlier this week. 
A senior Israeli official told the Telegraph that at least three of the hostages who were killed could have been saved.
“Hersh, Carmel and Eden were all on the list of hostages set to be released in the July 2 ceasefire proposal presented by Biden. We could have saved them,” the official said.
Defence Minister Gallant warned about this scenario in the security cabinet meeting earlier this week, according to reports in Israeli media. 
The security cabinet voted to keep IDF forces in the Philadelphi corridor, a buffer zone separating Gaza from Egypt and the main sticking point in the ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas. 
The Hostages Forum issued a statement on Sunday morning announcing a “complete halt of the country” through mass demonstrations. 
“The entire nation will stand alongside the hostages’ families to protest the cabinet’s ongoing neglect of the hostages,” the Hostages Families Forum Headquarters said. 
The main protests will take place in Jerusalem during today’s cabinet meeting at 4pm local time, and outside the Defence Ministry HQ in Tel Aviv at 7pm local time. 
“They will also call upon leaders of the world to exert all possible pressure on Hamas to sign the deal,” the forum added.
Benny Gantz, the leader of the opposition party, National Unity, also called on the public to demonstrate against the government on Sunday. 
“Netanyahu hesitates, is afraid and plays for time due to political considerations instead of acting. A game that costs human life,” Mr. Gantz said. 
“This morning our students go to school, and the public has to go out into the street. The time has come to replace the government of absolute failure. Go out and demonstrate,” he added. 
Opposition Leader Yair Lapid also lashed out at the government, saying: “Instead of making a deal they are doing politics, instead of saving lives, they are burying the hostages. Instead of doing everything to bring them home, Netanyahu is doing everything to stay in power. The government of disasters is burying the State of Israel,” Mr. Lapid said.
President Isaac Herzog said the “heart of an entire nation is shattered to pieces with the news of the murder” of the hostages. 
“On behalf of the State of Israel, I embrace their families with all my heart, and apologize for failing to bring them home safely,” Mr. Herzog added.
Vice President Kamala Harris sent her condolences to the family of Israeli-American Hersh Goldberg-Polin, saying: “I have no higher priority than the safety of American citizens, wherever they are in the world. President Biden and I will never waver in our commitment to free the Americans and all those held hostage in Gaza.”
“Hamas is an evil terrorist organization. With these murders, Hamas has even more American blood on its hands. I strongly condemn Hamas’ continued brutality, and so must the entire world. From its massacre of 1,200 people to sexual violence, taking of hostages, and these murders, Hamas’ depravity is evident and horrifying,” she added. At least 40,691 Palestinians have been killed and 94,060 injured in Israel’s military offensive in the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7, the enclave’s health ministry said in a statement on Saturday.
On Saturday, clashes broke out between Israeli troops and Palestinian fighters in the occupied West Bank as Israel pushed ahead with a military operation in the flashpoint city of Jenin. 
Hundreds of Israeli troops have been carrying out raids since Wednesday in one of their largest actions in the West Bank in months.
Mr Biden, speaking to reporters in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, said he was “still optimistic,” about a ceasefire deal to stop the conflict.
“I think we’re on the verge of having an agreement,” he said. “It’s time this war ended.”
Mr Biden added that “people are continuing to meet”.
“We think we can close the deal, they’ve all said they agree on the principles”.