Gallant Admits Israel Used Hannibal Directive During Gaza Assault

Occupied Palestine (Quds News Network)- Former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant confirmed that Israeli forces were ordered to implement the Hannibal Directive—a controversial protocol that calls for killing captives along with their captors—during the assault on Gaza.

An investigation by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz found last year that the Israeli forces did deploy its so-called Hannibal Directive, which allows the military to use all necessary force to prevent the capture of soldiers, during the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led “Al-Aqsa Flood” operation on Israel.

For nearly two decades, military censorship kept the directive, also known as the Hannibal Procedure or Hannibal Protocol, under wraps. It allows the Israeli military to use any force necessary to prevent Israeli soldiers from being captured and taken into enemy territory – up to and including action that will lead to those captives’ deaths.

In 2016, Israeli media, including The Times of Israel, reported that Israeli military chief Lieutenant-General Gadi Eisenkot had decided to “cancel” the Hannibal Protocol over apparent confusion over the freedoms it granted.

The Times of Israel reported at the time: “The directive allows soldiers to use potentially massive amounts of force to prevent a soldier from falling into the hands of the enemy. This includes the possibility of endangering the life of the soldier in question in order to prevent his capture.”

“Some officers, however, understand the order to mean that soldiers ought to deliberately kill their comrade in order to stop him from being taken prisoner, not that they may accidentally injure or kill him in their attempt.”