JERUSALEM, June 5 (Xinhua) -- Israel announced Thursday that its forces had retrieved the bodies of two hostages abducted during Hamas' assault on Oct. 7, 2023, which triggered an ongoing Israeli offensive in Gaza.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement that the bodies of Judi Weinstein-Haggai and Gad Haggai, an Israeli-American couple from Kibbutz Nir Oz, were located and returned in a joint operation by the Shin Bet domestic security agency and the Israeli military.
In a separate statement, the military and Shin Bet confirmed that the bodies were recovered from Khan Younis in southern Gaza, where Israeli forces have assumed military control since resuming their offensive on March 18, after Israel ended a two-month ceasefire.
"The operation was made possible as a result of precise intelligence provided by the Hostage Task Force, the Intelligence Directorate, and the Shin Bet," the statement said.
The family of the couple said in a statement they were "grateful for the closure and for bringing them home for a proper burial in Israel," but added: "Our hearts will not be whole until all 12 hostages from Nir Oz, and all 56 hostages in total, are brought back."
Weinstein-Haggai, 70, and Haggai, 72, were killed during the Hamas-led onslaught in 2023 on their community while they were out for an early morning walk.
About 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage during the attack, according to Israeli figures. As of Thursday, 56 hostages remain in Gaza, with 20 believed to be alive.
Israeli airstrikes have left much of the Gaza Strip in ruins and killed more than 54,510 people, according to health authorities in the enclave. ■
