But the Israeli military is coming under increasing pressure to reveal just how many of their own citizens were killed by Israeli soldiers, pilots and police in the confusion of the Hamas attack on southern Israeli communities.

Survivors and relatives have been asking not just "what went wrong", but whether the military invoked the controversial — and supposedly rescinded — "Hannibal Directive"...

The doctrine, written in 1986 in response to the kidnapping of Israeli soldiers in Lebanon, gave permission for Israeli forces to fire on enemies holding their comrades hostage — even at risk to those hostages.

Its authors said the directive did not allow captives to be killed, but critics say that over time an interpretation spread through the military that it was better to kill comrades than to allow their capture.