One of the most important trials of the post-war period: Israel is preparing a trial for the Hamas massacre. Three more suspects in custody after the terror alarm in Cologne

Israel is investigating evidence of the October 7 massacre of Palestinian terrorists that could lead to one of the most important trials of the post-war period, according to a media report. Israeli investigators are currently reconstructing the events using approximately 200,000 photos and videos and 2,000 witness statements with the intention of taking legal action against those responsible, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday. It would be the most important trial since the trial of Nazi criminal Adolf Eichmann in Israel in 1961.

Terrorists from the Islamist Hamas and other extremist groups killed about 1,200 people in Israel on October 7 and abducted about 240 others to the Gaza Strip. It was the worst massacre in Israel’s history. Israel responded with massive air strikes and a ground offensive. Forensic evidence provided to the newspaper by Israeli officials showed, among other things, that some victims were burned alive.

Photos show mutilations of the victims’ bodies, including the genitals of men and women. The bodies of women and girls also showed various signs of sexual violence. Hamas denied that its fighters killed children and raped women, the Hamas military said. The Wall Street Journal said it examined some of the evidence and also conducted interviews with first responders, survivors, victims’ families and forensic experts to document an attack that Israel’s police chief described as “systematic and unprecedented in its brutality ‘.

“The State of Israel has never before faced crimes and an investigation of this magnitude,” said Roi Sheindorf, a former deputy attorney general. According to the newspaper, it will probably be the most important trial since the Eichmann trial. The SS Obersturmbannführer had millions of Jews deported to extermination camps during the Nazi era. The Eichmann trial, which began in 1961 and attracted worldwide attention, lasted eight months and ended with the death penalty. He was hanged.

Israel has so far identified about 800 civilians killed on October 7, including 37 minors under the age of 17, six of whom were under the age of five, the newspaper reported. According to the head of the forensic center, computed tomography scans showed signs of torture and executions. The terrorists posted videos of killings and kidnappings on their victims’ social media pages for friends and family to view, the newspaper said. (sda/dpa)