In another question, the topic of whether babies were beheaded in the October 7 attack by Hamas on Israel is addressed.
Putting aside the specific claims of beheadings, allegedly some accounts are saying no babies were killed by Hamas at all. (This BBC article quotes some anonymously, but suggests they are false.]
Did Hamas kill babies during their rampage?
Yes.
Second Edit: As of Jan. 30th, the youngest victim is less than a day old unnamed girl, the daughter of Tripi and S. Abu Rashed, from Abu Karinat bedouin tribe. S. (the mother) was shot by Hamas terrorists on her way to the hospital to give birth to her girl. She was shot in her torso, one bullet hit the unborn child. When they reached the hospital the child was delivered and died later the same day. Her parents and uncle survived. A Hebrew article with more details.
Also, Omer Kedem Siman Tov was 2 years and 3 months old, not as previously reported, 4. Fixed in body.
Edit: As of Oct. 28th, the youngest victim whos name was released is 10 months old Mila Cohen who was murdered in her home.
At this time, not all the bodies have been identified, and of those that were not all names were released to the public. Of those whose names were released the youngest are Omer kedem siman tov, aged 2, who was massacred with his entire family. And Yazan Zakaria Abu Jama, an Arab Bedouin boy aged 5, who was killed when a Hamas missile hit near his home.
Beside these we have photographic evidence of Babies bodies from the attacks released by the IsraelPM twitter (X) account. Warning, graphic images
https://x.com/IsraeliPM/status/1712471782303867144?s=20
And finally we have first hand accounts of Zaka volunteers who collected and treated the bodies and remains of the murdered. Just one example from an interview with a Zaka volunteer depicting what he personally witnessed in Be'eri:
We found families that were simply shot to death. Some of them burned to death after they murdered them. We had to care for bodies of children and babies. They didn't distinguish between anyone they just went around and killed anybody they saw in front of them. We saw children, we saw small bags with babies inside.
As time will pass, more bodies will be identified and their names will be released to the public we will have a clear picture of the exact number of babies that were killed. But the proofs that babies were killed are irrefutable.
In addition to murdering babies, Hamas has also taken several kids and babies hostages. The youngest is Kfir Bibs, only 9 mounth old.
The Times of Israel reported in late December that Israeli authorities had identified 274 soldiers and 859 non-soldiers killed on October 7. Of them two babies and twelve other children under the age of 15. However, the Israeli governments list of Israeli civilian casualties only names one baby - Mila Cohen. She was shot through the door to their house's safe room by militants, according to The Cradle. Haaretz reported that the fetus of a mother who was shot did not survive so probably that's where the second "baby" comes from. It's also possible, albeit perhaps less likely, that Mila Cohen was double-counted or that one baby has not been identified yet.
Baby (infant) here defined as a child younger than twelve months, which is how the American CDC defines the word. According to victim lists, none other than Mila Cohen and the fetus/unborn child were younger than two years so how "baby" is defined is not critical.
In the aftermath of the attack Israel's prime minister tweeted photos of what he claimed were charred remains of burned babies and the US president repeatedly claimed to have seen photos of decapitated babies. The Israeli army claimed to have a photo of a "pregnant woman next to her beheaded unborn baby cut out of her belly". These claims are difficult to reconcile with the fact that only one or two babies (depending on how you count) has been identified.
As you can see in this graphic based on the official list of civilians, published and updated on 22.01.2024 by Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs. There are 5 children under the age of 5:
| name | age | category | cause of death |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mila Cohen (Kibbutz Be'eri) | 10 months old | baby | The family huddled together in their safe room as terrorists shot at the door, killing their 10-month-old daughter JNS |
| Abu Qrenat baby (mother shot in Reim junction) | 14 hours old | Fetus (at time of shooting) / baby | In the terrorists' attack on them on October 7, his 23-year-old wife S. was shot in the abdomen. The bullet hit the leg of the fetus, which she had been carrying in her womb (hebrew: davar1) |
| Omer Siman Tov (Kibbutz Nir Oz) | 2 years and 3 months | toddler | killed in their family Bunker (I havent found the method) |
| Yazan Zecharia Abu Jama (Ar'ara) | 5 years | Pre-schooler | Rocket struck his home |
| Eitan Kapshetar (Sderot) | 5 years | Pre-schooler | Shot in the family car in Sderot, together with other family members |
False Zaka Volunteer Testimony:
The following quote cited by @SIMEL is currently accepted to be a False report, as demonstarted through Haaretz's article: "Hamas Committed Documented Atrocities. But a Few False Stories Feed the Deniers", talking about Kibbutz Be'eri the volunteer says:
We found families that were simply shot to death. Some of them burned to death after they murdered them. We had to care for bodies of children and babies. They didn't distinguish between anyone they just went around and killed anybody they saw in front of them. We saw children, we saw small bags with babies inside.
Namely, apart form Mila cohen, There haven't been any other victims in Be'eri under the age of 10. The next youngest children are 2 12 years old sisters Yanai and Liel Hezroni that died when IDF used 2 tank shells to bomb a house full of hostages and hostage takers. (The incident is discussed here: Survivors' testimony on tank fire, families' call for IDF probe- Wikipedia). So "small bags with babies inside" is impossible to have happened.
A kibbutz spokesperson said:
"Nearly one hundred people were murdered on Kibbutz Be'eri, and the community suffered hundreds of heartbreaking incidents on that Black Saturday and over the past months, especially regarding the hostages. However, incidents such as eight murdered babies and a murdered Holocaust survivor named Genia – did not happen." Haaretz
Trying to explain the testimonies, a Zaka leader speaks: "Our volunteers were confronted with traumatic scenes and sometimes misinterpreted what they saw," said Otmazgin." France 24
for completeness victims for which age was not listed and couldn't be located are: 5 Nepali students, Sammi Jarjawi (Segev Shalom), Hatib Zaruk (Ofakim), Goytum Jabrahiwat (an asylum seeker) and 25 Thai workers. oct7map.com claims that Sammi Jarjawi is 52 but does not give a reliable source
