Body recovered in Gaza confirmed to be 23-year-old hostage Hamzah AlZayadni
Remains of son and father recovered earlier this week, says Israeli military
Israel's army confirmed on Friday that one of the bodies recovered from Gaza earlier this week was that of 23-year-old hostage Hamzah AlZayadni.
His body was retrieved with that of his father, Yosef AlZayadni, from an underground tunnel in the Rafah area. The pair were believed to have been taken together when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel 15 months ago. His father was quickly identified, while his son's remains were sent for verification.
The army said Friday that the identification was made by the National Institute of Forensic Medicine and Israel's police and the family has been notified.
The Hostages Families Forum, which represents families of hostages taken in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel, said Hamzah was a nature lover who had deep affection for animals and was beloved by his friends. He leaves behind a wife and two children.
There was no immediate comment from Hamas although the group's armed wing told Al Jazeera news network that most of the hostages in northern Gaza were now considered missing because of intense Israeli strikes there.
The left-leaning Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that the Israeli military has said it suspected Hamza and Yosef were killed in one of its strikes, given their bodies were found next to those of dead militants. A military spokesperson said this week that Yosef had not died recently.
The military declined to comment on the cause of the hostages' deaths.
Journalist killed in central Gaza
Israeli forces continued on Friday to pound Gaza, with Palestinian medics saying at least 15 people had been killed, including a journalist for Cairo-based Al-Ghad TV who had been covering an incident at Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza.
There was no immediate comment on the latest fighting from Israeli's military.
Gaza's Health Ministry said Thursday that 46,006 Palestinians have been killed and 109,378 wounded in the Israel-Hamas war, with no end in sight. It has said women and children were more than half the fatalities, but the ministry does not distinguish between fighters or civilians in its death tolls.
The Israeli military says it has killed more than 17,000 militants, without providing evidence. It blames Hamas for civilian deaths because it says militants operate in residential areas.
Israel's air and ground operations have driven hundreds of thousands of Palestinians into sprawling tent camps along the coast with limited access to food and other essentials.
The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and abducting around 250.
Israel says about a third of the remaining 100 hostages have died, but believes as many as half could be dead. Their fates could ramp up pressure on Israel to move forward with a deal.
Ceasefire negotiations still at impasse
Mediators Qatar, the United States and Egypt are making new efforts to reach a deal to halt the fighting in Gaza and free the remaining hostages before U.S. president-elect Donald Trump takes office on Jan. 20.
On Friday, the Hostages and Missing Family Forum renewed its call on the Israeli government to conclude a deal with Hamas and bring back the hostages, saying Yosef and Hamzah could have been saved through an earlier agreement.
The negotiations have been at an impasse for a year over two key issues. Hamas has said it will only free its remaining hostages if Israel agrees to end the war and withdraw all its troops from Gaza. Israel says it will not end the war until Hamas is dismantled and all hostages are free.
Israeli defence minister Israel Katz on Friday instructed the military to present a plan for the "total defeat" of Hamas in Gaza if it does not release the hostages before Trump's inauguration. It was not clear how such a plan would differ from existing Israeli military plans.
"We must not be dragged into a war of attrition against Hamas in Gaza, while the hostages remain in the tunnels, putting their lives at risk and suffering severely," he told senior commanders, according to a defence ministry statement.
With files from Reuters