Bodies of Israeli-American hostages Judi Lynn Weinstein and Gad Haggai recovered by Israeli forces in Gaza

Tel Aviv, Israel – Israel found the bodies of two Israeli-American hostages killed and caught in the terrorist attack on October 7 of Hamas which triggered the War in the Gaza StripIsraeli military and intelligence services said on Thursday. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the remains of Judi Lynn Weinstein and Gad Haggai had been recovered and returned to Israel in a special operation by the army and the BET internal security agency.

“With all the citizens of Israel, my wife and I extend our sincere condolences to dear families. Our hearts hurt for the most terrible loss. May their memory be blessed,” Netanyahu said in a statement.

Kibbutz nir oz announced death De Weinstein, 70, and Haggai, 72, who both had Israeli and American citizenship in December 2023.

The soldiers said they had been killed in the terrorist attack on October 7 and led to Gaza by the Mujahideen brigades, the small armed group which, according to him, had also removed and killed Shiri Bibas and her two grandchildren.

The army said that it had recovered the remains of Weinstein and Haggai during the night Thursday in the city of southern Gaza of Khan Younis. The Israeli army and Shin Bet declared in a joint declaration that the takeover had been “made possible as a result of specific information”. The Israeli army radio network reported that the relevant information had been obtained via the “interrogations of terrorists who were taken prisoner” during military operations in Gaza.

The couple was walking early in the morning near their home Kibbutz nir oz On the morning of October 7, when Hamas activists stormed the border and were unleashed through several army bases and agricultural communities.

Weinstein was able to call emergency services and let them know that she and her husband had been killed and send a message to her family.

Weinstein was born in New York and taught English to children with special needs in Kibbutz Nir Oz, a small community near the Gaza border. The Kibbutz said that it also taught meditation techniques to children and adolescents who suffered from anxiety following the Gaza Roquettes fire. Haggai was a retired chief and a jazz musician.

“My parents -in -law has been released. We have a certainty,” wrote their daughter, Iris Haggai Liniado, in a published message on social networks. She thanked the Israeli army, the FBI and the Israeli and American governments and called for the release of the 56 remaining hostages held in Gaza. Israeli authorities believe that around 20 of these captives are still alive.

The couple survived by two sons and two daughters and seven grandchildren, said Kibbutz.

Some 1,200 people, mainly civilians, were killed in the terrorist attack on October 7 led by Hamas, and a total of 251 others hostage, most of which were released as part of the temporary cease-fire agreements or other agreements. Israeli forces have saved eight living hostages from Gaza and recovered dozens of bodies.

The military campaign of Israel killed more than 54,600 Palestinians, mainly women and children, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health managed by Hamas, which does not provide detailed figures on the number of civilian people or combatants. The offensive has destroyed large parts of Gaza and moved around 90% of its population of approximately 2 million Palestinians, many people being moved several times.

The United States, Egypt and Qatar have tried to negotiate another cease-fire and a release of hostages after Israel put an end to an earlier truce in March and imposed a blockade that raised fears of famine, despite its attenuation in recent weeks. But the talks seem to be deadlocked.

Hamas says that it will only publish the hostages remaining in exchange for more Palestinian prisoners, a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. He offered to give power to a politically independent Palestinian committee.

Netanyahu rejected these conditions, claiming that Israel will only accept temporary ceases to facilitate the return of hostages. He promised to continue the war until all the hostages returned and Hamas is defeated or disarmed and sent in exile.

He said that Israel will maintain control of Gaza indefinitely and facilitate what he calls voluntary emigration from a large part of its population to other countries. The Palestinians and a large part of the international community have rejected such plans, considering them as a forced expulsion which could violate international law.