IDF says remains of two civilians and one soldier were retrieved in ‘special operation’ on Saturday
Israel announced on Sunday it had recovered the bodies of two civilians and one soldier held hostage in Gaza, amid its wars in Gaza and Iran.
The Israeli military said it recovered the remains of Ofra Keidar, Yonatan Samerano and SSgt Shay Levinson in an operation in Gaza on Saturday, more than 20 months after they were abducted by Hamas militants.
“In a special operation … the bodies of the hostages Ofra Keidar, Yonatan Samerano and SSgt Shay Levinson were recovered from the Gaza Strip yesterday,” the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement.
The hostage families forum said in a statement the return of the bodies “provides some comfort to the families who have waited in agony, uncertainty, and doubt for 625 days”. The group further urged the Israeli government to return the remaining 50 hostages from Gaza, which it said was the “key to achieving complete victory”.
