Captured alive, but killed in captivity: The 40 hostages who never made it back home alive - and why

Key Points:

• In a 2024 Israeli strike targeting Hamas commander Muhammad Shabaneh in Gaza’s Rafah, two Israeli hostages, Youssef and Hamza Ziyadne, were mistakenly killed, highlighting intelligence failures amid complex underground combat.
• Of the 251 hostages abducted by Hamas in October 2023, about 40 died in captivity due to torture, neglect, or Israeli military actions, with many deaths linked to the challenges of urban warfare and hostage rescue efforts.
• Israeli military officials acknowledged the difficulty of tracking hostages amid shifting locations and dense tunnels, and admitted some strikes unintentionally killed hostages despite efforts to avoid harm.
• Political delays and hardline demands by Prime Minister Netanyahu, including control over the Philadelphi corridor, are cited by officials as factors that prolonged the war and hindered earlier hostage releases.
• The final hostages were freed in late 2025 after a brief ceasefire, but families of deceased hostages criticize political leaders for claiming all hostages were brought home alive, emphasizing the human cost of the conflict.