‘No mercy’: Hamas sends a four-year-old into Gaza buffer zone

Israeli soldiers in Gaza’s buffer zone encountered an unsettling sight yesterday: a four-year-old boy walking toward their outpost, claiming he’d been sent by Hamas.

The incident unfolded in the volatile buffer zone, a restricted strip along Gaza’s perimeter enforced by the IDF to deter infiltrations since the October 7, 2023, attack. Spotting the boy advancing alone, soldiers from an unspecified unit hesitated, defying protocol. “The orders are clear—shoot anyone nearing the position,” an IDF source confirmed, speaking anonymously. “But this time, they waited.” When the child reached the outpost, he told them Hamas had dispatched him—a revelation prompting speculation: was he a test of IDF restraint, or a pawn for propaganda if shot?

“Hamas has no mercy,” the IDF stated, accusing the group of “using children and civilians to advance its terror policies.” Military officials suggested the intent might have been to provoke a deadly response, fueling claims of Israeli child-killing—a narrative Hamas has leveraged in past conflicts.

A Pattern of Exploitation?

The episode fits a grim pattern the IDF attributes to Hamas, which governs Gaza and has fought Israel through 17 months of war since its October 7 assault killed 1,200 and took 251 hostages. From tunnels beneath civilian homes to rockets fired near schools, Israel has long accused the group of embedding its war machine in populated areas—claims echoed Tuesday. “This isn’t new,” said an IDF officer familiar with Gaza operations. “They send kids to scout, to distract, or worse—to die for their cameras.”

The incident recalls prior allegations: in December 2023, Israel released footage of teens allegedly coerced into carrying explosives toward troops. Hamas denies such tactics, framing its fight as resistance against occupation.