Israel Receives Body Of Soldier Killed In Gaza 11 Years Ago

Israel has received the body of Lt Hadar Goldin, a soldier killed in an ambush by Hamas in 2014 and whose body has been held in Gaza since then.

The Israeli military said Lt Goldin, who was 23 when he died, was formally identified and will now be buried. He left behind parents, a sister, two brothers, and a fiancée.

Hamas’ armed wing had said on Sunday that it would hand over Lt Goldin’s body as part of a ceasefire deal.

Hamas has now returned all 20 living hostages, and 24 out of 28 deceased hostages under the first phase of the deal.

On Sunday, Lt Goldin’s father, Simcha Goldin, said in a statement: “Victory means bringing home the hostages and bringing home our soldiers to Israel.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog both said they had kept a picture of Lt Goldin in their offices for the past 11 years.

Netanyahu said, “we didn’t give up” on bringing him home.

“I know the agony that his family’s been through, I know the longing for his return that united the people of Israel and today we’re united in bringing him finally to his parents, to his family, to a grave in Israel.”

Efforts to retrieve Lt Goldin “involved extensive intelligence efforts, alongside operational activities on the ground” over the past decade and during the last two years of war between Israel and Hamas, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said.

The military expressed “deep condolences to the family and continues to make every effort to return all the deceased hostages and is prepared for the continued implementation of the agreement”.

Herzog said the government would “continue to act tirelessly” to bring home all the hostages.

Of the four hostages who remain in Gaza, three are Israeli and one is Thai.