Police officers from Lahav 433 detained for questioning the suspect who disseminated fake rumors on the rescue of hostages detained in the Gaza Strip on his TikTok account on Saturday, Israel Police announced Sunday.
The account, named "theshadow7000," which had thousands of followers, circulated unfounded claims that hostages, both dead and alive, had been rescued.
Following the rumors, TikTok announced it had blocked the account.
Earlier on Saturday, IDF Spokesperson R.-Adm. Daniel Hagari issued a statement on X/Twitter, which read, "In the last hours, incorrect rumors have spread regarding the rescue of hostages."
"Please listen only to official statements from authorized sources and refrain from spreading false rumors, which harm the families of the hostages and the public," he added.
בשעות האחרונות מופצות שמועות על חילוץ חטופים שאינן נכונות. השמעו להודעות הגורמים הרשמיים בלבד, והמנעו מהפצת שמועות כוזבות אשר פוגעות במשפחות החטופים ובציבור
— דובר צה״ל דניאל הגרי - Daniel Hagari (@IDFSpokesperson) October 19, 2024
"The rumors on various news and media networks are hurting the families of the hostages who have been waiting for the return of their loved ones for over a year," the Hostages and Missing Families Forum stated regarding the rumors.
Family calls to stop spreading rumors
The family of Liri Albag, one of the observers who was kidnapped on October 7 and whose name circulated in the rumors, wrote in response, "Please stop spreading rumors that only hurt us, the families of the hostages. Our beloved Liri has not been rescued. When there is good news, everyone will know. Good news will come soon."
Shai Albag, Liri's sister, wrote, "Every night isn't a night of sleep, but last night was another night full of rumors, half of which I spent sitting by the door waiting."
"It started with rumors that I already jumped in anticipation that my Liri was coming back, and it turned into anxiety that something terrible might have happened," she added.
On Sunday, Maariv reported that the suspect had been released for house arrest.