Six hostages’ bodies retrieved, Israel’s military says

The bodies of six hostages have been retrieved from the Gaza Strip, Israel’s military has said.

A statement from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the bodies of Yagev Buchshtab, Alexander Dancyg, Avraham Munder, Yoram Metzger, Haim Perry and British-Israeli Nadav Popplewell were recovered from the Khan Younis area on Monday.

Five of their deaths had already been announced by Israel, though Avraham Munder was thought to still be alive.

The recovery operation was carried out by the IDF alongside the security agency Shin Bet.

The six men had all been kidnapped alive during Hamas’s attacks on southern Israel on 7 October before being taken into Gaza, the Hostage Families Forum said.

In a statement, it said the recovery of the bodies had provided the families with “necessary closure”, adding that the return of the remaining 109 hostages from Gaza “can only be achieved through a negotiated deal”.

The group called on the Israeli government to “do everything in its power to finalize the deal currently on the table”.

Negotiations over a long-sought-after ceasefire and hostage release deal are ongoing, with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken currently in the Middle East pushing for an agreement.

On Monday, Mr Blinken said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had agreed to a US “bridging proposal” for a deal, after the pair met in Tel Aviv.

Hamas previously claimed that Mr Popplewell died of wounds sustained in an Israeli airstrike months ago.

In response to the recovery of the bodies, Israeli President Isaac Herzog said on Tuesday “we send our heartfelt condolences and a warm embrace to the families”.

“We must not stop for a moment from working in every way possible to bring back all the hostages,” he added.

The IDF said on Monday that it had expanded its operation in Khan Younis and the outskirts of the central town of Deir al-Balah.

On Monday, five people were killed in an Israeli air strike on an internet distribution facility in western Khan Younis, according to local health officials.

A medical source also told AFP news agency that three people were killed in Abasan, east of the city.

Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza in response to an unprecedented attack on southern Israel on 7 October by Hamas gunmen, during which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage.

More than 40,173 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.