ByTZVI JASPERSEPTEMBER 23, 2026 09:41Updated: SEPTEMBER 23, 2026 17:12

The IDF denied a report from Tuesday that claimed that kidnapping attempts had been made against soldiers near the Yellow Line, saying that the majority of the details included were completely baseless.

The claim, originally reported by Hebrew media, was that Israeli soldiers along the Gaza Strip had faced three separate kidnapping attempts, all of which were rebuffed by IDF forces.

Hebrew media had also reported that, in the wake of the three kidnapping attempts, IDF forces along the Yellow Line had retreated, and that counterattacks against the would-be kidnappers had failed.

According to the military, all of these claims are false.

The IDF denied that there had been any kidnapping attempts made against IDF soldiers, that no retreat had been conducted, and that the IDF had been transparent regarding which details in the original report were based on reality.

IDF Paratroopers Brigade operating in the Gaza Strip. Pictures released on August 24, 2026. (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)

Specifically, the IDF stated that "Public statements were transparently issued by the IDF Spokesperson regarding all incidents in which IDF engineering vehicles were damaged by explosive devices," and that "Similarly, an incident involving the sound of gunfire in the area in early September was also reported and made public."

According to the IDF, strikes had been conducted in retaliation for each of these actual events.

"Any other claim is completely baseless," the military concluded.

Katz threatens Gaza over possibility of Hamas taking hostages again

The report of kidnapping attempts came several hours after Defense Minister Israel Katz threatened to destroy all that remains of Gaza City and to force around one million Gazans to evacuate if Hamas, provoked by Iran or Turkey, takes a single Israeli hostage.

Katz said he was responding to the increasing threat of potential aggressive actions by Iran, Turkey, and proxies, including Hamas.

In response, People of Israel chairman and founder Brig.-Gen. (res.) Ofer Winter called on Katz to stop making empty threats.

"Instead of eliminating the threat, officials go on the air and threaten that if anyone is abducted, all of Gaza will be evacuated," Winter said, adding that Hamas would not take the threat seriously as "251 people were abducted and that didn't happen."

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