Israel recovers bodies of 3 hostages taken by Hamas

The Israeli military announced Friday that it has recovered the bodies of three hostages held by Hamas, including two soldiers.

The two soldiers, Cpl. Nik Beizer and Sgt. Ron Sherman, both 19 years old, were taken hostage by the militant group at the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war Oct. 7. The body of 28-year-old Elia Toledano was also recovered, the military said in a brief statement.

It is estimated that approximately 1,200 people were killed and 200 were kidnapped on Oct. 7 and taken hostage by Hamas, including soldiers and civilians. More than 100 women and children hostages were freed during a weeklong cease-fire in the war early this month.

“Our national mission is to locate the missing and return all the hostages home,” the Israeli military said in Friday’s statement. “We are working together with security agencies, and with all intelligence and operational means in order to return all of the hostages home.”

The Israeli government has come under increasing pressure from the U.S. and world powers to wind down its retaliatory military operations in Gaza over concerns about civilian casualties. Hamas operations remain mostly intact through two months of fighting, leading to questions over the effectiveness of the Israeli military strategy.

More than 18,400 Palestinians have been killed in the war, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, and almost the entirety of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million people has been displaced from their homes and requires humanitarian assistance, the United Nations said.

On Tuesday, the U.N. passed a resolution calling for a cease-fire to help civilians in Gaza. Only eight nations joined Israel and the U.S. in voting against it.

Fighting in Gaza has slowed in recent days as the Israeli military moves south, toward parts of the region with a higher density of civilians. Military analysts have warned that dense, urban fighting in southern Gaza will be the most difficult and dangerous in the conflict.