President Donald Trump revealed Sunday night that Hamas had returned the body of American citizen Omer Neutra, along with the remains of two other hostages. “I spoke to Omer’s parents, Ronen and Orna,” Trump said, expressing sorrow and support for the grieving family.
Ronen Neutra, Omer’s father, later wrote an emotional message: “And your children shall return to their own borders. Our Omer is on Israeli soil, at last. So much pain, and so much relief.”
Earlier that evening, Israel’s Prime Minister’s Office confirmed that three coffins containing the bodies of hostages had been transferred to Israeli custody through the Red Cross. The remains were received inside Gaza by the IDF and Shin Bet in a formal military handover attended by the Chief Military Rabbi. From there, they were brought to the National Center for Forensic Medicine under the Ministry of Health for identification.
Officials stated that after the identification process is completed, the families of the victims will be formally notified.
In a separate announcement, Hamas released identification documents — including the IDF card and driver’s license — belonging to the late Assaf Hamami, who was killed during the October 7 massacre. Hamas representatives had earlier informed Al-Hadath that they recovered the bodies of three Israeli hostages who were slain.
Reports from Sunday morning indicated that members of Hamas’s military wing joined Red Cross personnel and engineering vehicles entering Shuja’iyya, in eastern Gaza City, to search for the remains of hostages believed to have been killed.
Just a day earlier, Israel’s Institute of Forensic Medicine had completed testing remains that had previously been turned over by Hamas, concluding that they did not belong to any of the hostages.
According to the IDF, Hamas is currently holding at least two bodies that could be returned immediately. The army further estimates that there are between three and five additional sets of remains whose locations are unknown even to Hamas.
{Matzav.com}
