Israel Says Remains of the Last Hostage in Gaza Have Been Recovered

Israel said on Monday that the remains of the last hostage held in Gaza had been recovered and identified, ending a more than two-year ordeal for the families of captives and clearing the way for the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire, CBS News and NBC News reported.

The Israel Defense Forces said representatives had told the family of Ran Gvili, a 24-year-old police officer killed during the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, “that their loved one has been identified and is being buried.” “With this, all of the abductees have been returned from the Gaza Strip,” the military said, according to CBS News. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum said of him: “First to enter. Last to return.”

The announcement came a day after Israel said its military had launched a “large-scale operation” in a cemetery in northern Gaza to find Gvili’s remains. His family had urged the government not to enter the second phase of the ceasefire until he was returned, CBS News reported. Israel had repeatedly accused Hamas of dragging its feet on the recovery, while Hamas said it had provided all the information it had and accused Israel of obstructing searches in areas under Israeli military control. Israel’s military said the operation was near the “Yellow Line” that has divided the territory since the ceasefire began, CBS News reported.

President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social, “Just recovered the last Hostage body in GAZA,” NBC News reported. Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said the recovery “confirms Hamas’s commitment to all the terms of the agreement,” and, CBS News reported, he urged mediators and the United States to compel Israel to stop what he called violations.

The ceasefire, brokered in part by Trump, took effect on Oct. 10, and both sides have accused the other of breaches since then; dozens of Palestinians have been killed, CBS News reported. Under the next stage, Israel has said it would partially reopen the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, NBC News said. The stage would also require Hamas to disarm, a key sticking point, and settle the makeup of an international force to oversee security in Gaza, NBC News reported.

Israel and Hamas had been under pressure from mediators, including the Trump administration, to move into the second phase, CBS News said.