Israeli forces accused of killing their own citizens under the 'Hannibal Directive' during October 7 chaos
The Israeli military is under pressure to reveal how many of their own citizens were killed due to the supposedly rescinded and controversial "Hannibal Directive". (AP /Tsafrir Abayov )
Those words, reported by Israeli newspaper Haaretz in July, confirm what many Israelis have feared since the Hamas attacks on October 7 in southern Israel.
Israelis are still reeling from the horror and pain of the Hamas-led terror attack, which was the bloodiest single day in Israel's history.
But the Israeli military is coming under increasing pressure to reveal just how many of their own citizens were killed by Israeli soldiers, pilots and police in the confusion of the Hamas attack on southern Israeli communities.
Survivors and relatives have been asking not just "what went wrong", but whether the military invoked the controversial — and supposedly rescinded — "Hannibal Directive".
Relatives of hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip and their supporters protested near the hotel where US Secretary of State Antony Blinken stayed during his visit to Israel in August. (AP: Ohad Zwigenberg )
