Kenneth Roth: "Israel applied the Hannibal directive on Oct 7"
Kenneth RothFormer executive director, Human Rights Watch
Kenneth Roth wrote that Israel applied the Hannibal Directive on October 7 and that Israelis were deemed better dead than abducted, citing Haaretz's report.
“Israel applied the Hannibal directive on Oct 7. Israelis were deemed better dead than abducted”
Original post
Where this statement fits
Did Israeli forces kill Israelis under the Hannibal Directive on October 7?
On October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attackers struck southern Israel. About 1,200 people were killed in Israel that day and about 250 were taken hostage into Gaza. In July 2024, Haaretz reported that documents and testimony show the Israeli military used the Hannibal procedure, which directs force to stop soldiers from being taken captive, at three army sites that day. The detailed findings of a UN commission of inquiry say Israeli fire likely killed at least 14 Israeli civilians in two incidents. The IDF has said a helicopter likely killed Efrat Katz of Kibbutz Nir Oz and that tank shrapnel highly likely killed one hostage outside a house in Kibbutz Be'eri, and it has defended the decisions of its commanders. Former defense minister Yoav Gallant said in February 2025 that he thinks an order to apply the procedure was given tactically in some places and not in others. The dispute is over whether, and how often, Israeli forces fired on Israeli captives that day, and how many Israelis that fire killed. The record also covers hostages later killed by Israeli fire in Gaza, including three who were shot in Shejaiya in December 2023 after escaping their captors.
Source and context
Original post
About this source
Kenneth Roth's post on his X account, quoting Haaretz's July 7, 2024 report.
Before the quotation
Roth posted on the day Haaretz published its report on the Hannibal procedure on October 7.
After the quotation
The post quotes Haaretz: "'Not a single vehicle can return to Gaza' was the order."
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point is Israeli fire on October 7, 2023, under or in the manner of the Hannibal Directive, that put Israeli captives at risk of being killed by Israeli forces. Roth asserts that Israel applied the directive and judged captives better dead than abducted, which criticizes the conduct. The closest competing label is Mixed or conditional, but the post states its conclusion without qualification.
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Read the full casePolitiFact says it has not revisited related claims and its Nova video rating stands
PolitiFact
“We have not gone back and looked at related claims, and the rating stands.”Read statement
IDF points to its published October 7 investigations and declines further comment
Israel Defense Forces
“The IDF has published investigations concerning its conduct on October 7th, and beyond that, we will not comment.”Read statement
Michael Starr: under the directive, soldiers fire "at risk to friendlies, not at friendlies"
“The directive is a removal of safeties that come with the use of live fire, as Americans may be familiar with danger close mortar or artillery strikes. Fire is directed at hostiles, not at hostages, but the safety protocols are essentially removed. You are shooting at risk to friendlies, not at friendlies.”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "Kenneth Roth: "Israel applied the Hannibal directive on Oct 7"". First published: 2026-10-07. Last updated: 2026-10-07. https://disputeindex.com/events/5146-kenneth-roth-wrote-that-israel-applied-the-hannibal