Israel recovers the remains of 3 more hostages from Gaza
[June 23, 2025]
By TIA GOLDENBERG and SAMY MAGDY
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — The Israeli military said Sunday that it has
recovered the remains of three hostages held in the Gaza Strip. At least
four Palestinians were killed in an Israeli airstrike and 22 wounded
while waiting for humanitarian aid, according to a local hospital.
The military identified the remains as those of Yonatan Samerano, 21;
Ofra Keidar, 70; and Shay Levinson, 19. All three were killed during
Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack into Israel that ignited the ongoing war.
The militant group is still holding 50 hostages, less than half of them
believed to be alive.
The military did not provide any details about the recovery operation,
and it was unclear if the airstrike was related to it.
“The campaign to return the hostages continues consistently and is
happening alongside the campaign against Iran,” Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu said in a statement.
Kobi Samerano said in a Facebook post that his son’s remains were
returned on what would have been Yonatan’s 23rd birthday.
War in Gaza rages on as new front opens with Iran
Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and
abducted 251 people in the Oct. 7 attack. More than half the hostages
have been returned in ceasefire agreements or other deals, eight have
been rescued alive and Israeli forces have recovered dozens of bodies.
Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed over 55,000 Palestinians,
according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which has said that women and
children make up more than half of the dead. It does not distinguish
between civilians and combatants.
Four people were killed on Sunday in an airstrike in the built-up
Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, according to Al-Awda Hospital,
where the bodies were brought. It said another 22 people were wounded
while waiting for aid trucks.
Palestinian witnesses and health officials say Israeli forces have
repeatedly opened fire on crowds seeking desperately needed food,
killing hundreds of people in recent weeks. The military says it has
fired warning shots at people it said approached its forces in a
suspicious manner.
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Separately, World Central Kitchen, the charity run by celebrity chef
José Andrés said it had resumed the distribution of hot meals in
Gaza for the first time in six weeks after shutting down because of
Israel's blockade, which was loosened last month amid fears of
famine.
Hostage families call for their release
The Oct. 7 attack and Israel's offensive ignited a chain of events
leading to Israel's surprise attack on Iran last week. The United
States entered the war overnight with attacks on three Iranian
nuclear sites.
The Hostages Families Forum, the main organization representing
families of the hostages, has repeatedly called for a deal to
release the remaining captives.
“Particularly against the backdrop of current military developments
and the significant achievements in Iran, we want to emphasize that
bringing back the remaining 50 hostages is the key to achieving any
sort of victory,” it said in a statement Sunday.
Hamas has said it will only release the remaining hostages in return
for more Palestinian prisoners, a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli
withdrawal from Gaza.
Netanyahu has rejected those terms, saying Israel will continue the
war until all the hostages are returned and Hamas is defeated or
disarmed and sent into exile. Even then, he has said Israel will
maintain lasting control over Gaza and facilitate what he refers to
as the voluntary emigration of much of its population, plans the
Palestinians and others view as forcible expulsion.
The United States, Qatar and Egypt have been trying to broker a new
ceasefire and hostage release after Israel ended a truce in March
with a surprise wave of airstrikes. Those talks appear to have made
little progress as Israel has expanded its air and ground offensive.
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Magdy reported from Cairo.
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