Body of an Israeli hostage recovered from Gaza

JERUSALEM — Israel’s Shin Bet domestic security agency said Wednesday that Israeli forces recovered the body of a hostage held in Gaza.

Itay Svirsky was captured alive from southern Israel during the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack. Israel believes that he was killed while in captivity by his captors who held on to his body.

The Shin Bet did not disclose details of the mission to recover Svirsky’s body.

During its attack, Hamas terrorists killed 1,200 people and kidnapped 250. Israel believes roughly 100 remain in Gaza, about a third of whom are dead.

Israel’s offensive has killed more than 44,500 Palestinians in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza, which does not say how many were combatants. The Israeli military says it has killed over 17,000 terrorists.

The Israeli military said Wednesday that an investigation into the deaths of six hostages whose bodies were recovered from Gaza earlier this year determined that they were likely shot and killed by their captors in an underground tunnel after an Israeli strike hit nearby.

The military recovered the bodies of the six hostages — all men, including three in their 70s and one in his 80s — from the southern city of Khan Younis in August. The investigation said the strike in question was one targeting Hamas commanders in February.

“Due to the extended time that had passed, it was not possible to determine with complete certainty the precise cause of death of the hostages or the exact timing of the gunfire,” the military statement said.

An Israeli military official said the results were based on a “forensic examination” carried out after the bodies were recovered. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to discuss the findings with the media, and did not not provide details on the examination.

The military said it had no intelligence indicating that hostages were held in the area and would not have struck had it known. The military said that while troops followed all the necessary approvals for conducting the strike, it has added additional approvals to its protocols for certain strikes in response to the hostages’ deaths.

In the north, the Israeli military said Wednesday it struck a launcher in southern Lebanon, which it said was in violation of the ceasefire it agreed to with the terrorist group Hezbollah.

Israel has struck Lebanon repeatedly in the week since the ceasefire began, saying it reserves the right under the U.S.- and France-brokered deal to strike what it views as violations by Hezbollah.

Hezbollah struck a disputed border territory held by Israel earlier this week, in what it said was a warning over the Israeli strikes.

U.S. State Department deputy spokesman Vedant Patel, speaking to reporters in Washington on Tuesday about the Lebanon ceasefire, said it was “largely holding in place.” He would not speak to individual allegations of violations.

The ceasefire is meant to end nearly 14 months of cross-border fighting between Israel and Hezbollah that began when the terrorist group began firing at Israel in solidarity with Hamas and the war in Gaza.

A strike on the Muwasi tent camp was one of several deadly assaults across the Gaza Strip on Wednesday.

The Israeli military said it struck senior Hamas terrorists “involved in terrorist activities” in the area and said it took precautions to minimize harm to civilians.