live from london. this is bbc news. israel's military says three hostages who were mistakenly killed by its soldiers in gaza were holding a white flag. families of the hostages hold a rally in tel aviv — to urge the israeli government to resume negotiations with hamas. the funeral is held for an aljazeera camera operator who has been killed in gaza by an israeli air strike. the missing british boy who was found in france, six years after he went missing, is expected to travel back to the uk shortly. and the highest ranking church official ever to stand trial before a vatican criminal court — cardinal angelo becciu — has been jailed for embezzlement. and luton�*s premier league football match at bournemouth is abandoned

after their captain, tom lockyer, collapses on the pitch. he's in a stable condition. hello, i'm tanya beckett. the israeli army says three hostages who were mistakenly shot dead by troops in gaza had been holding a white flag. early findings from an official investigation said the men were fired on in breach of the army's rules of engagement. an israeli soldier began shooting when three shirtless men emerged from a building in the suburbs of gaza city. alon shamriz, yotam haim and samer el—talalqa were killed in shejaiya, in the north of gaza. the idf has called their killing "very tragic". an army spokesman told the bbc the soldier and his colleagues had made a mistake and would not be punished. from tel aviv, here's hugo bachega.

for the families of the hostages who remain in gaza, it's an agonising wait. made worse by a tragic mistake. the israeli military has given new details about how three is really captives were shot dead by its own soldiers. alon shamriz, yotam haim and samer el—talalqa emerged shirtless waving a white flag. one of the soldiers identified them as a threat and opened fired. two were killed instantly, a third, injured, returned to the building and was later killed. it's clear that we don't want to kill our hostages if we find them. it's clear that this was a tragic, tragic error by our forces and we have to do our own checking

to make sure to a maximum that it will not re—occur. friends and relatives of the hostages have been gathering here in tel aviv in what is now known as hostages square. this place has become a symbol of the agonising wait of the families, many are angry with the government. freeing the hostages should be the main priority, they say. but their protests haven't been able to stop the israeli military offensive in gaza. the families say time is running out. translation: we must reach a deal for the release of all hostages now. i we're in a kind of russian roulette. every day, we don't know which of the families of the hostages will get a knock on the door with horrible news. gaza, too, is mourning its dead. this was the funeral for samer abudaqa, a well—known palestinian cameraman who worked for the al for the aljazeera network and was killed in an israeli drone strike.

he is a compassionate soul. he's very dedicated to bringing the coverage to the world. he had the opportunity, by the way, to emigrate to belgium, to brussels, where his family is now residing. but he refused. he said, "gaza's story is my story." in tel aviv tonight, the vigil continues. prime minister benjamin netanyahu is under pressure. israel says it needs more time to eliminate hamas and that only military force will bring back the hostages. but many here disagree. hugo bachega, bbc news, tel aviv. we are going to now take you to tel aviv and the protests there. this in the wake of those hostages being shot by the israeli forces. crowds gathering there in what is known now as hostages square, one of the symbols of the family's agonising wait for those who still are captive in gaza. some of the families of

those are still held as hostages in gaza were speaking earlier and expressing their frustration that they felt that the israeli government was not prioritising the release of those hostages and instead was pursuing the conflict in gaza without sufficient regard for their welfare. our security correspondent frank gardner has more on the idf response to the killing of those three israeli hostages. they have been unreservedly apologetic for it, they have said they expressed deep remorse, they began an investigation straightaway and they announced, they were very quick to announce their findings, which are deeply embarrassing. the rules of engagement, they said, have been broken. rows of engagement are the guidelines, the which dictate when soldiers can or cannot open fire on what they believe is an enemy. in this case, they have said that they were broken. they will not reveal what the idf, the israel

defence for this, rules of engagement are, but it is pretty clear that firing on someone waving white flag is against pretty much everyone's rules of engagement. and it is quite tragic for the families of these three, because they had survived 70 days in hamas captivity. these are young men in their 20s. it is not clear yet what they were doing and accompanied by her mass captors, so there is speculation that they might have escaped or that they had been abandoned by their captors. but either way, they emerged from the building only to be shot. two were killed on the spot, another one was wounded and retreated back into the building, called out in hebrew asking for help, he emerged again and then one of the soldiers shot him. and they were stripped to the waist to show that they were not carrying any suicide vests or explosives, and yet still they shot them. of course this is tragic for the families, but you have got to see this in a wider

context of this war which has killed 19,000 nearly palestinians, of whom are around 7000 maximum are hamas fighters. the majority of those killed are women and children. frank, does it also raise a question here as to whether this dual goal of eradicating the threat from her mass and also retrieving hostages are in fact incompatible? it and also retrieving hostages are in fact incompatible?— fact incompatible? it certainly raises that — fact incompatible? it certainly raises that question. - fact incompatible? it certainly raises that question. the - fact incompatible? it certainly - raises that question. the hostage families are very clear on this, that you cannot have both. they are saying time is running out. they have had this very emotional sort of vigil today in tel aviv outside the museum of arts, what is known as hostages square. one of them held up an egg timer with the sound running out, saying time is running out to save our loved ones. there are still nearly 130 hostages held there. some of them are going to be very difficult to negotiate their release. some of them are senior

officers in the israeli defence forces, for which hamas will demand a very high price. but nevertheless, the fact is what these relatives are angry about is that they feel the government is going about this the wrong way. the israeli government view is that only force will get her mass to release or force them to give up these hostages. but the families say, "hang on, actually it was careful negotiation that got the other ones out earlier." if you remember during that seven day brief respite in the fighting, around just over 100 hostages were released, and that was after careful, painstaking diplomatic negotiation by qatar and egypt, backed by the united states, involving the intelligence agencies of egypt, usa, qatar, involving the intelligence agencies °f egyp'c, usa, qatar, israel. they forged of egypt, usa, qatar, israel. they forged they °f egyp'c, usa, qatar, israel. they forged they dear, hostages came out. yes, israel had to give up hundreds of palestinian prisoners from its presence and it had to open the

borders that let aid in, pose the fighting, but in the end it was a success. that is not what was happening right now. trying to rescue hostages under fire happening right now. trying to rescue hostages underfire is notoriously dangerous. i have watched this go wrong in yemen, i have reported on it going wrong in afghanistan. it rarely works out for the best. there is nearly always fatalities in it. and the families are seriously worried and they want their government to listen to them. meanwhile, british—palestinian families have urged the government to create a visa scheme for stranded relatives in gaza. a letter, sent to foreign secretary david cameron on behalf of 80 families, calls for a scheme similar to the ukraine family scheme visa. a petition on parliament's website calling for a new visa scheme also has more than 22,700 signatories. earlier, i spoke to yousef alhelou, a british palestinianjournalist

and documentary film—maker who lost eight members of his family. an israeli air strike struck their home in the eastern part of gaza city. my sister asma in her in her mid 30s was killed alongside seven of her children, my nieces and nephews. the eldest, majd, is 17. the youngest is only one month old. she was born during this war. they are still under the rubble. we are unable even to bury them. and i feel really heartbroken that civilians are being killed, including my family. and it's really sad that we are in this situation. i don't know the fate of my mother, father, four brothers, two other sisters. we live in the dark. due to lack of communications and the destruction of the internet. and i'm worried about them all the time. we are concerned about their safety.

you said about the family members that you'd lost, that they were in the east of gaza city. what about your mother and father? where are they? because the fighting has been particularly intense as we know there? some of them, they managed to evacuate to the south and khan yunis and rafah. but the majority, they are still in gaza city because of the intensity of the bombardment. they couldn't make it. they are being starved now. last time i spoke to them a week ago, they said they ran out of food. there is no medicine, there is no water. and, you know, it's very cold, there's no heating. and, you know, each time they survive, it's a miracle. you know, i can't sleep with my family here in london. it's really you know, i was heartbroken. i was collapsed when i heard the news. and i'm worried about

the rest of my family. i also lost scores of my relatives in gaza, across the gaza strip. you know, gaza has been subjected to relentless air strikes and bombardment and shelling. civilians were caught up in these hostilities. it's the world's largest open air prison. and, you know, the siege complicated their lives. so we are urging the british government... you are a british citizen. so, yes, just to interrupt here for a moment, you are a british citizen. so and you're urging the government to open a family scheme similar to what occurred at the time that russia invaded ukraine. and there were two parts to that scheme, but one is that relatives of british citizens were able to come. yes, a humanitarian family scheme, a humanitarian route equivalent to that scheme that was designed for ukrainians. i understand the complexities, but gaza should be given this opportunity because, you know, i need my family to be with me. each time, you know, each moment i have to check my phone, i have to make some contact just to make sure that to make sure they are safe. so i urge the british government, the foreign office, the home office to help us bring them to safety,

because, you know, britain has to play a role in portraying itself as a place of sanctuary. britain, you know, the uk welcomes refugees from all over the world. and i have a list here. there are some countries already they evacuated the relatives of citizens of different countries, including portugal, australia, canada. so britain should play a role in this and this letter. we haven't received a reply from david cameron's office. away from that conflict or the us navy says it's shot down 1a attack drones over the red sea — believed to have been launched by yemen's iran—backed houthi rebels. the defence secretary, grant shapps, said the royal navy's hms diamond destroyer also shot down a drone in the red sea, which was targeting merchant ships. live now to rear admiral dr chris parry. he's a former royal navy warfare officer, strategic forecaster and writer. welcome to the programme. what do

you make of these attacks on merchant ships?— you make of these attacks on merchant ships? you make of these attacks on merchant shis? ~ ., ., merchant ships? well, the houthi are t in: to merchant ships? well, the houthi are trying to intervene _ merchant ships? well, the houthi are trying to intervene in _ merchant ships? well, the houthi are trying to intervene in the _ merchant ships? well, the houthi are trying to intervene in the crisis - merchant ships? well, the houthi are trying to intervene in the crisis in - trying to intervene in the crisis in israel and gaza and try and do their bit. 0bviously they are being backed by iran, because these drones are coming from iran originally. so for their own reasons in the local area, but also in support of obviously what is going on in gaza, they are trying to do their bit as i said. unfortunately, it is leading to indiscriminate attacks on international shipping and quite innocent shipping as well. what has happened is the navies of the free world have intervened to say you don't do that at sea. find world have intervened to say you don't do that at sea.— world have intervened to say you don't do that at sea. and the us has si . nificant don't do that at sea. and the us has significant assets _ don't do that at sea. and the us has significant assets in _ don't do that at sea. and the us has significant assets in the _ don't do that at sea. and the us has significant assets in the region, - don't do that at sea. and the us has significant assets in the region, so l significant assets in the region, so it is able to do that. film. significant assets in the region, so it is able to do that.— it is able to do that. oh, yes. the united states _ it is able to do that. oh, yes. the united states navy _ it is able to do that. oh, yes. the united states navy has _ it is able to do that. oh, yes. the united states navy has a - it is able to do that. oh, yes. the united states navy has a carrier l united states navy has a carrier battle group sitting in the gulf of oman. 0ne battle group sitting in the gulf of oman. one of its destroyers has come 0man. one of its destroyers has come

around and is operating in the red sea. the french indeed shut down 12 to three days ago, the french ship shut down a drone and now hms diamond has done the same. 0ne shut down a drone and now hms diamond has done the same. one of the things we have to bear in mind is peace doesn't keep itself at sea and the sea where they are patrolling all the time and making sure the bad guys aren't actually there, interfering with international shipping. there, interfering with international shi -|na. , ., international shipping. they will do it. the international shipping. they will do it- the role — international shipping. they will do it. the role of _ international shipping. they will do it. the role of course _ international shipping. they will do it. the role of course of _ international shipping. they will do it. the role of course of the - international shipping. they will do it. the role of course of the houthi| it. the role of course of the houthi because of its position adjacent to the red sea, so we arejust because of its position adjacent to the red sea, so we are just going to show a map to make that point, that this is a very important trait artery, isn't it?— this is a very important trait artery, isn't it? yes, i mean it is what is known _ artery, isn't it? yes, i mean it is what is known as _ artery, isn't it? yes, i mean it is what is known as a _ artery, isn't it? yes, i mean it is what is known as a choke - artery, isn't it? yes, i mean it is what is known as a choke point. | artery, isn't it? yes, i mean it is - what is known as a choke point. the straits, they are one of the things i have been saying in a book for some years now, the sea is the physical equivalent of the world wide web and every now and then, if you get people interfering in these

vital trade arteries, it will have the same effect as having a cyber attack on the internet. most of the cables that carry the internet to go under the sea, though if we want to be involved in globalisation, if we want to protect the international rules —based system, then we have to enforce the law at sea. if i can take the analogy further, people like the houthi, the somali powers, even great powers like russia and china, trying to interfere with freedom of the seas are a bit like malware in your computer system. they will interfere with what you are trying to do. so what we have to do in these situations is say, look, if we believe in the freedom of the seas, we have to protect its for those who go about. the seas, we have to protect its for those who go about. the reality is that if ships _ those who go about. the reality is that if ships feel _ those who go about. the reality is that if ships feel under _ those who go about. the reality is that if ships feel under threat, - that if ships feel under threat, merchant ships, they are going to avoid that route, and that has implications. in fact, they are already doing just that. it is implications. in fact, they are already doing just that.- already doing 'ust that. it is a similar already doing just that. it is a similar situation _

already doing just that. it is a similar situation with - already doing just that. it is a similar situation with the - already doing just that. it is a similar situation with the one | already doing just that. it is a i similar situation with the one we had with somali pirates a few years ago. the insurance goes up for these ships, people do not want to take the risks, and that is why the warships of the free world have to intervene and protect these ships. but it is not going to stop. you will see in the black sea for example, ukraine has been using drones against russian ships. it is a feature of modern warfare. i have been trying to analyse how much it costs to actually shoot these things down. if you use a missile against a drone that possibly costs around $15,000, it is costing you $90,000 to shoot it down. but i think what the uss carney has been doing is shooting these drones down with its five inch gone, so they cost ratios are not too bad. the modern gunfire we have got on warships is pretty accurate, and i think more and more you will see them used rather than

missiles. ., ~ , ., , you will see them used rather than missiles. ., ~' , ., , . missiles. thank you very much indeed. a british teenager who was missing for six years is on his way home. alex batty, who is now 17, disappeared on a family holiday to spain with his mother and grandfather in 2017. he was found on wednesday morning by a motorist who saw him walking through the rain near toulouse. a local resident said the teenager had been living in la bastide on and off over the past two years. french authorities said he ran away from his mother because she wanted to take him to finland. his grandmother, susan curuana, who is his legal guardian, says she can't wait to see him. lorna gordon reports. this is the secluded guesthouse where alex batty is thought to have lived with his grandfather for the last two years. off the beaten track, high in the foothills of the french pyrenees. it is the home and community that he left for good last week. now 17, alex disappeared while on a family holiday to spain with his mother and

grandfather in 2017. neither adult had parental guardianship of the teenager. he told the authorities he'd spent the last few years on the move from country to country. alex had left his home in the north of england to go to marbella on holiday with his mother and grandfather. it was in malaga a week later that he was last seen — on the day they were due home. alex's grandmother said she'd believed he'd been taken to morocco to live with a spiritual community. the french police said he could have been there for around two years before moving to spain and then finally coming to france and living with a travelling community in the mountains. the teenager reappeared after he was picked up by a motorist in the early hours of wednesday morning. the driver took him to police for safety. alex told them his mum had wanted to move to finland

and he'd had enough of his nomadic lifestyle. he also told them that his grandfather had died around six months ago. but speaking to locals today, the bbc was told by three people that, in fact, his grandfather had been seen alive at the guest house here where they'd been staying as recently as last week. tonight, alex batty is on his way back to england, where he will be reunited with his grandmother. the authorities left trying to piece together who he's been with, why he left, and how they managed to evade the search for him for so long. lorna gordon, bbc news in the french pyrenees. a football match in england's premier league has been abandoned after a player collapsed on the pitch. luton town's captain, tom lockyer, was taken ill midway through the second half of the game against bournemouth. he was treated on the pitch for a quarter of an hour before being carried off on a stretcher and taken to hospital, where he is said to be in a "stable" condition. lockyer underwent heart surgery

earlier this year after he collapsed in may in the championship play—off final at wembley. let's now go straight to tel aviv where the israeli prime minister is speaking in tel aviv. let's listen in. translation: , ., , ., translation: citizens of israel, we are at war on — translation: citizens of israel, we are at war on our _ translation: citizens of israel, we are at war on our existence. - translation: citizens of israel, we are at war on our existence. in - translation: citizens of israel, we are at war on our existence. in this | are at war on our existence. in this war, we must continue until we reach a victory, despite the international pressure and despite the intolerable heavy price that this war exacts from us as our sons and daughters are killed in action. the state of israel grieves over the tragic death of three of our hostages, alon shamriz, yotam haim and samer el—talalqa. when i was informed about this terrible tragedy, it

struck me they had survived this hell for 70 days and they were so close to being saved and rescued. and it was exactly then that the disaster had happened. it broke my heart. it broke the hearts of the entire nation. our hearts go out to the families as they face this terrible sorrow. at this difficult hour, it is important for me to strengthen our troops as well. they are risking their lives in order to bring back the hostages. we are doing everything. we are going to continue to do everything in order to safeguard the lives of our troops. each and every one of them is precious and we will take every possible means to make sure that they will not be harmed. since the tragedy occurred yesterday, i am haunted by one thought. what would have happened only if, if only

something would have been different? and i'm certain that this kind of thinking is something that you will share with me. we were so close to embracing them now, but unfortunately we cannot turn back the clock. anybody who has ever been involved in combat knows that the distance between victory and disaster is ever so slim. we will draw the lesson is, we will implement the lessons and we will remain relentless in our military and diplomatic efforts to bring back all the hostages home safety. with all the hostages home safety. with all the hostages home safety. with all the terrible sadness, let me clarify that the military pressure is necessary, both for bringing back the hostages and to achieve victory. without the military operation, we would not have been able to bring an outline that brought the release of over 100 hostages and continued military pressure will bring the release of all of the hostages. the assumption of entering negotiations is based on this pressure. without

this pressure, we have nothing. citizens of israel, two days ago we lit the last candle of chanukah. backin lit the last candle of chanukah. back in the day at the times of the maccabees, four out of the five sons were killed as we fought our enemy. and in this day and age, in the gears battles, our modern day macca bites have also fallen as they fall against our enemy. we have lost precious men and women. —— the last candle of hanukkah. so that the threat of our lives will not be severed. together with all of the citizens of israel, i embrace the bereaved families and i weep with them as a bereft brother. i know that until their very last day, they will never stop missing their loved

ones, they will never stop crying over the death of those who have gone. i spoke with the parents and widow of the tenant colonel, the commander of battalion 13, who fought heroically and was killed heroically this week with his fellow troops, and i said to them what i said to all of my brothers and sisters from the bereft families. i know that this pain that has pierced your heart will never go again, but there is one condolence to guarantee that our heroes did not die in vain. to guarantee that we will continue to fight until we reach absolute victory. and i have conveyed this determination to the security advisor of the us, with whom i have met two days ago. i truly appreciate and value the support of the us to israel in helping to bring back the hostages and providing munitions to the idf, and in assisting us in the

un to block various proposals. but i once again reiterate and say, we are more determined than ever to follow this through until we bring back all of the hostages, and we obliterate hamas. and until we can guarantee that no element in gaza is funding terrorism, and educates for terrorism, and educates for terrorism, and educates for terrorism, and i say that you so many people over the world that a lot of people understand and i insist on that this evening. this is not politics, this is my policy, and today i can say that this is what a vast majority of israelis want. i will not allow hamas to be replaced, to replace khan younis with... that fatal mistake of oslo. that are fully committed to the obliteration of the state of israel and educate their children on that doctrine, because their purpose is not whether you obliterated the state of israel

but merely how to do so. that is the difference. according to a survey from a few days ago, 82% of palestinians justified a terrible massacre of october seven, and until this very day senior officials from the palestinian authority refused to condemn the massacre, some even praise it. haven't we learnt anything? as the prime minister of the state of israel, i will not allow this to happen. it is important to clarify this point right now because it is important to say the truth among friends and not foster illusions. moreover, when we are talking about such a fitful and existential topics such as this, so i once again say to our friends, after we eliminate hamas, the gaza strip will be demilitarised under israeli security military control and there will not be any element there that will threaten us or educate their children to demolish children. i would like to say to

you, the citizens of israel, victory will take time but we are determined to fully continue this fight, despite the terrible pain, despite the grief that has pierced our hearts, despite international pressure, we are going to continue and follow this through. nothing will stop us until we achieve victory. together we will fight and god willing, together we will win. israel's prime minister, benjamin netanyahu there, reaffirming his support for the military action in gaza. he has said that he would like to continue the journey to obliterated hamas. he talked a great deal about hostages and he regret he felt about the hostages that were killed by israeli forces.— killed by israeli forces. those three he talked _ killed by israeli forces. those three he talked about - killed by israeli forces. those three he talked about being l killed by israeli forces. those - three he talked about being killed yesterday. he said he was wanted by that tragedy. he now pledges to

obliterated her mass and bring back the hostages, so those goals has not changed. he said he was supported by a vast majority of its release. he would push back against international pressure and he said that victory would take time. so in that victory would take time. so in that he mentions the loss of the israeli forces fighting in gaza. he also mentioned the israeli hostages. he did not allude to the loss of life in gaza as a result of that military operation. he said," we are at war on our existence and we are paying an intolerably heavy price for that." benjamin netanyahu there, speaking on a day when there have been considerable protests in tel aviv concerning the return of the hostages, those families who feel that not sufficient attention is being paid to that goal, the dual goal of the course of neutralising

the threat from her mass, as benjamin netanyahu sees it, and also returning those hostages. the families of the hostages running a rally, a very significant rally in tel aviv, and speaking out quite considerably earlier, their frustration and their sense that their voices are not being heard and their voices are not being heard and the hostages are not being given sufficient priority at the moment. the context of this operation, which has now been running for a considerable time. the international pressure, of course, is coming from a variety of sources in order to curtail, aimed at curtailing this operation, and indeed the us has said that it would like to see a ramping down of the operation early injanuary. ramping down of the operation early in january. just ramping down of the operation early injanuary. just quickly some other news. a vatican court has convicted pope francis's former adviser to 5.5 years in jail pope francis's former adviser to 5.5 years injailforfinancial pope francis's former adviser to 5.5 years in jail for financial crimes. this is bbc news.