Israeli Army says it recovered body of hostage in Gaza

The Israeli Army on Wednesday said it had recovered the body from the Gaza Strip of an Israeli citizen who was kidnapped by Hamas during its terrorist attack on Oct. 7 and held hostage, and was working to identify the remains of another body as a possible Israeli hostage.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF), along with Israel’s intelligence services, located and recovered the body of Youssef Ziyadne, 53, from an underground tunnel in the area of Rafah in the Gaza Strip, and returned his body to Israel, it said. The IDF said Ziyadne was killed in captivity.

The IDF said it also had evidence related to Ziyadne’s son Hamza, who was also abducted on Oct. 7. Officials said the information raises serious concerns for his life, but did not confirm death.

Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz said the bodies of Youssef and Hamza were recovered in an "heroic operation" and said he had grown close to the Ziyadne family, who accompanied him in meetings with world leaders to advocate for the hostages release, during his time as Minister of Foreign Affairs.

"Even now, in these moments, we continue to do everything to fulfill our supreme moral obligation - the return of all the abductees, living and dead, to the Land of Israel," he wrote in Hebrew on X.

"The pain of the Ziyadna family is the pain of all of us, and the memory of Yousef and Hamza will not be forgotten.

The recovery of Ziyadne’s body comes as Israeli and U.S. officials are participating indirectly in talks with Hamas for a cease-fire and hostage release deal, where an estimated 60 hostages are believed to still be alive out of approximately 100 people. Hamas kidnapped more than 200 people from southern Israel on Oct. 7 and approximately 100 were released during a week-long ceasefire at the end of November 2023.

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, the non-profit organization advocating for the release of hostages held by Hamas, described Ziyadne as “a man of dialogue and human connection, a pillar of strength for his family and an influential figure in his community.”

He was kidnapped on Oct. 7 from Kibbutz Holit, along with his three children, Hamzah, and Bilal and Aisha, who were released during the November deal.

“The deal on the table comes far too late for Yosef [Youssef] - who was taken alive and should have returned the same way,” the forum said in a statement.

“Every day in captivity poses an immediate mortal danger to the hostages who have managed to survive for 15 months, and threatens the possibility of returning the deceased for burial. The time and conditions are ripe for the return of all hostages - the living for rehabilitation and the deceased for proper burial. We anxiously await additional information regarding Hamzah's fate.”

President-elect Trump has warned of “hell” breaking loose in the Middle East if the hostages are not returned before his inauguration, and Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the Biden administration is working to conclude a ceasefire and hostage release deal in the final weeks of the president's term in office.

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