Israeli forces on Thursday recovered the bodies of three hostages from the Gaza strip, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) confirmed on Friday. The announcement was made by Chief military spokesman Daniel Hagari.
Hagari also named the three deceased who have been identified as Shani Louk, Amit Buskila, and Itzhak Gelerenter. He further stated that all three of them were taken to Gaza and murdered murdered on 7 October by Hamas, as they were trying to escape the Nova music festival that day.
After being murdered their remains were taken back to Gaza, IDF said.
Although he did not say where the bodies were found, a BBC report stated that bodies were found in a Hamas tunnel, citing local media reports.
During late October, when the war began between Israel and Hamas, the Israeli government had confirmed the death of Louk, a 23-year-old German-Israeli tattoo artist.
According to a Reuters report, a purported video of Louk, showing her half-naked body slung across the back of a pick-up truck, while being paraded through Gaza, was circulated on social media.
However, Gelerenter's family had no clue about the fate of the 57-year-old until Friday. "We held on to hope and had a lot of faith that the end would be different," Reuters quoted his daughter as saying.
Israeli PM Praises Military For Operation
Following the recovery of the thre bodies, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the news "heart-breaking" and praised the military operation carried out by the Israeli army in a statement. He also reiterated a pledge to return all the hostages, "the living and the deceased alike," he said in the statement on Friday.
However, in response to the Israeli military's announcement, Hamas said that it was "skeptical" of Israel's claims, adding that the only way Israeli hostages would return alive would be through a truce, Reuters reported.
The armed wing of Hamas added that the hostages would return only through an "honourable exchange deal for our people".
When the Hamas gunmen launched attacks at Israel they killed about 1,200 people and took 252 others back to Gaza as hostages, BBC reported.
Bodies Recovered From Gaza In Overnight Operation
IDF, in its statement said that the three bodies were recovered in an operation overnight. The forces acted on an intelligence retrieved from "interrogations of terrorists," detained in Gaza, BBC reported.
It stated that the three victims had been killed near the site of the Nova festival massacre in southern Israel, following which their bodies were taken to Gaza.
During the Nova festival massacre, more than 360 people were killed by the Hamas armed outfit in October attack. About 125 hostages still remain unaccounted for, while the others have either been released or rescued.
A group named The Hostages Family Forum that works towards bringing together relatives of those being held hostage in Hamas, said they "bow their heads in deep sorrow and broken hearts after the announcement". The group also added that the three were killed by "Hamas terrorists", wishing, "may their memories be a blessing".
In November, Hamas released 105 hostages in return for a week-long ceasefire under a deal.
Hamas has some 240 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. It is unclear as to how many of the unaccounted for are still alive.
The peace talks that have been long-running in Cairo to secure a truce and carry out further hostage releases are currently stalled.
After the unprecedented October 7 attacks, Israel launched an offensive in Gaza, killing over 35,000 people, mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
United Nations said around 2.2 million Palestinians are facing chronic food shortages and are in dire need of shelter among other assistance.
Israeli Air Strike Kills Palestinian Militant, 8 Civilians Injured
The Palestinian Health Ministry and Israeli military confirmed that a Palestinian militant was killed in an Israeli air strike on the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank on Friday. Eight other people were also injured during the attack.
The deceased has been identified as a member of armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) group, which named the killed man as Islam Khamayseh, Reuters reported.
The eight wounded people are in stable condition and receiving treatment at hospitals, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.