Jan. 26 (UPI) -- The Israeli military has launched an operation in northern Gaza to retrieve the body of the last remaining hostage in the Palestinian enclave.

A total of 251 people were abducted from Israel and taken into Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas conducted a bloody surprise attack on the Middle Eastern country.

Many of the hostages, some of whom were killed in the initial attack, were released or rescued prior to an October 2025 cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, which facilitated the repatriation of all the remaining hostages aside from the 24-year-old Ran Gvili.

Gvili, a Border Police officer, was taken on Oct. 7 from Alumim, a religious kibbutz located in southern Israel, near Gaza.

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