The Israeli army was on Saturday investigating the killing of three hostages which it said had been mistakenly identified as a threat by soldiers, an incident that sparked protests in Tel Aviv.
The military said Yotam Haim, Alon Shamriz and Samer El-Talalqa -- all in their 20s -- were shot during operations in Gaza City.
They were among about 250 people taken hostage during Hamas`s October 7 attacks in Israel, which killed around 1,140 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli figures.
Vowing to destroy Hamas and bring back the hostages, Israel launched a massive military offensive against the Palestinian Islamist movement that has left much of the Gaza Strip in ruins.
The territory`s Hamas government says the war has killed at least 18,800 people, mostly women and children, reports AFP.
Army spokesman Daniel Hagari said that during fighting in the Shejaiya district of Gaza City, troops "mistakenly identified three Israeli hostages as a threat and as a result, fired toward them and the hostages were killed".
The military said later it had started "reviewing the incident" and that "immediate lessons from the event have been learned" and passed on to all troops on the ground.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described their deaths as an "unbearable tragedy".
Hundreds of people are expected to gather Saturday in Tel Aviv to call on Netanyahu`s government to secure the release of 129 hostages still held in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.
I am dying of fear," said Merav Svirsky, sister of Hamas-held hostage Itay Svirsky, at a protest on Friday evening. "We demand a deal now."
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