Bullets were found inside the bodies of hostages recovered from the Gaza Strip earlier this week, Israeli media reported.
The bodies of six men taken captive on October 7, all of whom were killed in captivity, were brought back to Israel to be laid to rest.
The six hostages returned to Israel were Nadav Popplewell, Yagev Buchshtab, Yoram Metzger, Haim Peri, Alexander Dancyg, and Avraham Munder, all found in the Khan Yunis area in Gaza.
Family members speak of fears of possible execution of hostages
Esther Buchshtab, the mother of recovered hostage Yagev Buchshtab, said Thursday that the family members found out that he had been shot dead in captivity, Ynet reported.
Additionally, the same report notes that following the IDF operation that recovered the hostages, it was learned that the late Yoram Metzger was also shot to death. The main assessment made about the other hostages returned to Israel was that they suffocated to death as a result of a fire that broke out following an IDF attack in the area, Ynet stated.
The hostages were murdered in captivity, the IDF stated on Tuesday. However, Israeli media reports that bullets were found in the bodies of hostages returned to Israel have not yet been confirmed by the IDF.
The National Institute of Forensic Medicine, Israel Police, and the IDF Manpower Directorate’s Hostage Team conducted an identification procedure of the bodies and notified their families and communities.
Gadi Zaig and Yael Halfon contributed to this report.