Dec 15 (Reuters) - The Israeli military mistakenly killed three hostages being held in Gaza by Hamas during an incident which is "under review", a military spokesperson said on Friday.

The military said the hostages were killed during combat with militants in Gaza and expressed its condolences to the families while saying there would be "full transparency" in the investigation into the incident.

A statement from the military said that during an intense battle in Gaza it "identified three Israeli hostages as a threat". "As a result, the troops fired toward them and they were killed."

Earlier on Friday, the Israeli military said it had recovered the bodies of three Israelis - a civilian and two soldiers - who had been held in the Gaza Strip by Hamas.