Exclusive Report: Israel’s army reports the recovery of 3 captives’ bodies
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Israeli forces recover Bodies
Israeli forces have recovered the bodies of three hostages from Gaza, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) say. The bodies were those of Shani Louk, Amit Buskila, and Itzhak Gelerenter, it said. The IDF said they had been boggled on October 7 and their remains taken back to Gaza. The original media reported that the bodies were set up in a Hamas lair.
Details of the Victims
About 1,200 people were killed in an unknown attack when Hamas markswomen burst into Israel. They took 252 others back to Gaza as hostages. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the news “heart-breaking.” “We’ll return all of our hostages, the living and the departed alike,” he said. In a statement, the IDF said the bodies had been recovered in an operation overnight.
It said it had acted on intelligence picked from “examinations of terrorists” who had been detained in Gaza. It said the three victims had been killed at an intersection near the point of the Nova Jubilee butchery in southern Israel before their bodies were taken to Gaza. More than 360 people were killed at the jubilee. About 125 hostages remain unaccounted for, with the others having been released or saved. In October, the mama of Shani Louk, a common German-Israeli citizen, said the Israeli service had verified her daughter had failed after a piece of her skull bone was found.
However, it was hoped that Amit Buskila and Itzhak Gelerenter were still alive. Ms. Buskila was a fashion hairstylist and social media influencer who had been on the phone to her uncle while trying to hide when she was abducted on October 7. Mr. Gelerenter was a father and forefather who arrived at the Nova Jubilee only hours before the attacks began.
Official Reactions and Statements
The Hostages Family Forum, a group bringing together cousins of those being held, said they “bow their heads in deep anguish and with broken hearts following the advertisement.” They said the three had been killed by “Hamas terrorists”, adding, “may their recollections be a blessing.” Under a deal agreed in November, Hamas released 105 hostages in return for a week-long ceasefire and some 240 Palestinian captures in Israeli jails. It isn’t clear how many of those unaccounted for are still alive. Following the IDF’s advertisement, the fortified sect of Hamas said the internees they hold would return only through an “honourable exchange deal for our people.”
Ongoing Conflict and Hostage Situation
Long-handling addresses in Cairo aimed at securing an armistice and further hostage releases are presently stalled. After the 7 October attacks, Israel launched a descent in Gaza that has killed more than 35,000 people, substantially civilians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. About 2.2 million Palestinians are facing habitual food shortages and are in critical need of sanctum and other backing, the UN says.