Israeli forces recover bodies of 2 hostages with U.S. citizenship held in Gaza

Israeli forces have recovered the bodies of two hostages with dual Israeli-U.S. citizenship, Judith Weinstein-Haggai and Gad Haggai, a married couple whose remains were being held in Gaza since the beginning of the war there in October 2023.

The Israeli military and Shin Bet, Israel's domestic security agency, recovered the bodies of Weinstein-Haggai, 70, and Haggai, 72, in a special operation, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement Thursday morning.

The couple, from kibbutz Nir Oz, were killed during the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks, in which around 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage.

Since then, more than 54,000 people, including thousands of children, have been killed in Gaza during Israel's ensuing military offensive, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry there.

The Israeli military and Shin Bet said in a joint statement Thursday that Weinstein-Haggai and Haggai were killed and taken into Gaza by members of the Mujahideen Brigades, the armed wing of the Palestinian Mujahideen Movement.

It said its operation was made possible by precise intelligence from Israeli authorities, and added that the loved ones of the couple and community of Nir Oz had been notified of the recovery of the couple's bodies.

The status of Weinstein-Haggai and Haggai had initially been unclear in the aftermath of the attacks, but then-President Joe Biden said in December 2023 that Weinstein-Haggai was found to have been killed Oct. 7, along with Haggai.

“Our hearts ache for the most terrible loss. May their memory be blessed,” Netanyahu said after the bodies of Weinstein-Haggai and her husband were recovered.

“We will not rest or be silent until we return all of our abductees home — the living and the dead alike,” he added.

Weinstein-Haggai and her husband were among four Israeli-Americans whose bodies were believed to remain in Hamas captivity, with Itay Chen, 19 and Omer Neutra, 21, still believed to be held in Gaza.

Edan Alexander, who was believed to be the last living U.S. citizen held captive in Gaza, was freed May 12.

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In a statement Thursday, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which represents families of the hostages held in Gaza, said the return of the remains of Weinstein-Haggai and her husband “for proper burial in their beloved homeland represents the closing of a circle and the fulfillment of the state’s fundamental obligation to them.”

They reiterated calls for the Israeli government to do everything in its power to reach a ceasefire agreement that would see the rest of the more than 50 hostages who remain held in Gaza, both alive and dead, to be returned.

So far, efforts to negotiate a new ceasefire deal have failed to produce a result after the last one fell apart in March, with Israel and Hamas trading blame for the failure to reach a truce.