Israel Receives Remains of Two Hostages as Identification Begins

Israel has received the remains of two hostages returned from Gaza through a Red Cross operation. This transfer occurred on Tuesday, marking a significant moment in ongoing efforts to identify and return the remains to their families. Officials confirmed that identification processes will commence before the remains are handed over to relatives, as military authorities continue their commitment to recover all remaining captives.

The coffins were delivered to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Shin Bet, Israel’s internal security agency, operating within Gaza. From there, the remains will be transported to Israel, where they will be honored in a military ceremony led by the chief military rabbi. Following the ceremony, the remains will be entrusted to the National Center of Forensic Medicine under the Ministry of Health for identification. Families will receive formal notifications once this process is complete.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office has stated that all families of deceased hostages have been kept informed and that their profound loss has been acknowledged. The prime minister emphasized the relentless effort to recover all hostages, asserting, “The effort to return our hostages continues ceaselessly and will not stop until the very last hostage is returned.”

On the same day, the remains of another hostage were identified as belonging to Sgt. Maj. Tal Haimi, who served as the commander of Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak’s rapid response team. Haimi, aged 41 at the time of his death, was killed in action during the attack on October 7, 2023. His remains were subsequently taken to Gaza, where they were held for over two years. Initially, Haimi’s family believed he was captured alive, with Israel officially declaring him deceased on December 13, 2023.

Following the identification of Haimi’s remains, Netanyahu’s office extended condolences to his family and reiterated its demand for Hamas to return the remains of all deceased hostages to ensure they receive proper burials. The IDF has also called on Hamas to meet its obligations under the agreements brokered by the Trump administration.

On October 13, 2025, the final 20 surviving hostages were returned to Israel after enduring more than two years in captivity. Since that time, a total of 28 deceased hostages’ remains have been gradually returned. However, 13 hostages, including U.S. citizens Itay Chen and Omer Neutra, along with soldier Hadar Goldin, whose body has been held since 2014, remain in Gaza.

This ongoing situation reflects the tension and complexity surrounding the Israel-Hamas conflict, where the return of hostages and their remains remains a sensitive and critical issue.