No authenticated photographs or video footage of decapitated infants have surfaced. (Representational)
Kfar Aza, Israel:
An experienced Israeli army officer claimed on Friday that he had discovered the remains of a beheaded infant in one of the kibbutz communities assaulted by Hamas on October 7.
Colonel Golan Vach, the commander of the military search and rescue service, informed AFP that while combing through debris at the Beeri kibbutz three days after the attacks, he witnessed a mother protecting an infant.
“When I lifted it, I encountered a beheaded baby. I picked it up with my hands and placed it in a body bag. I personally did it,” he shared during a media tour of another kibbutz organized by the military.
Israel has reported that 1,400 individuals died and at least 229 were taken as hostages when Hamas militants targeted kibbutz communities, towns, and military bases in southern Israel.
The Israeli government states that numerous women and children were among the casualties, subjected to appalling acts of violence, but specific figures have not been released.
Hamas denies allegations that its fighters killed infants during the cross-border raids.
The Hamas health ministry reported on Friday that since October 7, 7,326 individuals, including 3,038 children, have been killed in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza leading up to an anticipated ground invasion. Israel and the United States have expressed doubts about the Hamas figures.
Initially, claims of infant beheadings were disseminated through Israeli media outlets and were initially corroborated by Israeli officials; however, later spokespersons clarified that the report could not be verified.
US President Joe Biden also made a reference to beheaded infants, although his office later clarified that he had not seen any visuals.
No authenticated photographs or video footage of beheaded infants have been released since the attacks occurred.
While speaking on a tour of the devastated Kfar Aza kibbutz, a community of 700 that was heavily affected by the attacks, the Israeli colonel revealed that he has been questioned about the absence of images since his shocking discovery.
“People ask me why I did not take a photograph. I replied: ‘I am sorry, I have children. I have limitations. I have boundaries. I do not take a photograph of a decapitated baby,” Vach said.
The colonel mentioned that a soldier was “decapitated” at Kfar Aza. Military officials state that there is no way to determine if there were other instances of soldiers or civilians being beheaded.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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