Autopsies of the six Hamas hostages found in a tunnel in Rafah on the afternoon of August 31 have revealed gruesome details. The Health Ministry confirmed that the hostages were killed 48 to 72 hours before the autopsies, indicating their deaths occurred between Thursday and Friday morning.
According to The Times of Israel, the Abu Kabir Forensic Institute found that all six hostages were shot multiple times at close range. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) stated that Hamas terrorists executed the hostages shortly before their bodies were discovered by Israeli troops.
The six hostages killed were Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Ori Danino, Alex Lobanov, Carmel Gat, and Almog Sarusi. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi visited the site where the bodies were found to conduct an assessment, accompanied by the head of the IDF Southern Command, Maj. Gen. Yaron Finkelman, and hostage negotiator Maj. Gen. (res.) Nitzan Alon.
Channel 12 reported that security officials suspect Hamas may have killed the hostages out of fear that a recently rescued hostage might reveal information about the location of other hostages. Last week, IDF special forces rescued 52-year-old Farhan al-Qadi.
IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari described the hostages as having been “brutally murdered” by Hamas. He said, “Based on initial assessments… they were brutally murdered by Hamas terrorists shortly before we reached them. They were taken alive on the morning of October 7 by the Hamas terror group.” He added that their bodies were found in a tunnel during the fighting in Rafah, approximately a kilometer from where Farhan al-Qadi was rescued a few days earlier.
The IDF noted that they had a general idea of where the six hostages were being held but did not know the exact location. “Since finding Farhan, troops were instructed to operate with extra caution, knowing there could be more hostages in the area. However, we did not have precise information on the hostages’ exact location,” Hagari explained.
After the hostages were found dead, their bodies were reportedly transported from Gaza to Israel overnight for identification. Following the news of their deaths, mass protests erupted across Israel, with demonstrators urging the government to negotiate the release of the remaining hostages.
