Six bodies of hostages taken in Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack have been recovered, the Israeli military said Tuesday.
The military said its forces recovered the bodies in an overnight operation in southern Gaza, without saying when or how the six died.
U.S. and Arab mediators have been working to advance an agreement to halt the fighting and release other hostages, and on Monday saw a “breakthrough.”
The military said it had identified the remains of Haim Perry, 80; Yoram Metzger, 80; Avraham Munder, 79; Alexander Dancyg, 76; Nadav Popplewell, 51; and Yagev Buchshtav, 35.
Metzger, Munder, Popplewell and Buchshtav had family members who were also abducted but freed during a November ceasefire.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the recovery effort and said “our hearts ache for the terrible loss.”
“The State of Israel will continue to make every effort to return all of our hostages—both alive and dead,” he said in a statement.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant also praised the operation, which he said had been carried out inside Hamas’ vast tunnel network.
There were no immediate reports of any casualties among Israelis or Palestinians in the recovery operation.
A forum for hostage families said that the individuals killed were kidnapped alive.
Hamas says some captives have been killed and wounded in Israeli airstrikes.
The recovery is a blow to Hamas, which hopes to exchange hostages for Palestinian prisoners, an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and a lasting ceasefire.
It is also likely to increase pressure on Israel’s government to reach a deal to release the dozens of hostages who are still believed to be alive.
Hamas is still believed to be holding around 110 hostages captured in the Oct. 7 attack. Israeli authorities estimate around a third of them are dead.
Hamas initially took 250 hostages and more than 100 were released in exchange for Palestinians imprisoned in Israel during a weeklong ceasefire last year
On Monday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned that now is “maybe the last” opportunity to reach a Gaza ceasefire agreement that would return hostages held by Hamas.
Blinken made the comments while visiting Israel in his ninth urgent mission to the Middle East since the conflict began.
Mediators, including the United States, expressed renewed optimism a deal was near last week.
The mediators have been trying to finalize a proposal for a three-phase process in which Hamas would release all the hostages in return for the release of more Palestinian prisoners, an Israeli withdrawal from the territory and a lasting truce.
Hamas has agreed to the ceasefire proposal presented by the United States, but remains opposed to what the group argues are “new conditions” added by Israel, according to a statement shared with Newsweek.
U.S. officials claimed talks saw a breakthrough earlier on Monday.
Following what he described as “a very constructive meeting” with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the prime minister had “confirmed” to him “that Israel supports the bridging proposal” put forth by the U.S., Qatar and Egypt in a bid to push through the deadlocked negotiations.
Blinken said that “the next important step is for Hamas to say ‘yes.'”
