Israel says it has recovered the bodies of two hostages taken in Hamas’s October 7 2023 attack that ignited the war in Gaza.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the remains of Judih Weinstein and Gad Haggai had been recovered and returned to Israel in a special operation by the army and the Shin Bet internal security agency.
“Together with all the citizens of Israel, my wife and I extend our heartfelt condolences to the dear families. Our hearts ache for the most terrible loss. May their memory be blessed,” he said in a statement.
Kibbutz Nir Oz announced the deaths of Ms Weinstein, 70, and Mr Haggai, 72, both of whom had Israeli and US citizenship, in December 2023.
The military said they were killed in the October 7 attack and taken into Gaza by the Mujahideen Brigades, the small armed group that it said had also abducted and killed Shiri Bibas and her two small children.
The army said it recovered the remains of Ms Weinstein and Mr Haggai overnight into Thursday from the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis.
The couple were taking an early morning walk near their home in Kibbutz Nir Oz on the morning of October 7 when Hamas militants burst across the border into Israel, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251.
In the early hours of the morning, Ms Weinstein was able to call emergency services and let them know that both she and her husband had been shot and send a message to her family.
The couple were survived by two sons and two daughters and seven grandchildren, the kibbutz said.
Ms Weinstein was born in New York and taught English to children with special needs at Kibbutz Nir Oz, a small community near the Gaza border.
The kibbutz said she also taught meditation techniques to children and teenagers who suffered from anxiety as a result of rocket fire from Gaza.
Mr Haggai was a retired chef and jazz musician.
“My beautiful parents have been freed. We have certainty,” their daughter, Iris Haggai Liniado, wrote in a Facebook post. She thanked the Israeli military, the FBI and the Israeli and US governments and called for the release of all the remaining hostages.
Hamas-led militants are still holding 56 hostages, around a third of them believed to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. Israeli forces have rescued eight living hostages from Gaza and recovered dozens of bodies.
