The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) recovered the bodies of five hostages in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, the IDF said on July 25. The hostages were killed on October 7, and Hamas transported the bodies to Gaza, the IDF stated.
The recovered remains include those of Maya Goren, a mother of four who worked as a kindergarten teacher in Kibbutz Nir Oz. The four other slain hostages were soldiers: Master Sergeant (Res.) Oren Goldin, Staff Sergeant Tomer Ahimas, Sergeant Kiril Brodski, and Sergeant Major (Res.) Ravid Aryeh Katz.
IDF Spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said that the bodies of the hostages were found in tunnels, including one that was 20 meters under Khan Younis in an area designated as a humanitarian zone in Gaza. Hagari condemned Hamas for exploiting the humanitarian area to hold the remains. He said 115 hostages are held in Gaza, including many known to be or presumed dead. The total includes the bodies of Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin, two IDF soldiers killed in 2014. It also includes Hisham Sayed and Avera Mengistu, Israelis who crossed into Gaza in 2015 and 2014, respectively.
Twenty-four bodies of hostages have been recovered from Gaza since October 7, according to The Times of Israel. Thirty-nine of the remaining hostages held in Gaza have been confirmed to have been killed since October 7. On July 22, the IDF confirmed that Alex Dancyg and Yagev Buchshtab were both killed in Gaza several months ago.
The IDF has been searching for the hostages since the early days of the war, but this effort has increased in recent months. Once larger Hamas units were largely defeated in northern Gaza in November and December of 2023, and in Khan Younis in the first months of 2024, the IDF could return to conduct more thorough searches for bodies. It could also prepare rescue operations for hostages who are still alive.
In February, Israeli forces freed two hostages in a raid in Rafah. In June, four hostages were freed in a raid in Nuseirat in central Gaza. Among those freed was Noa Argamani, who recently traveled to Washington with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to attend his speech before the US Congress.
The rescue of the bodies in Khan Younis was made possible by the IDF’s raid into the area that began on July 22. “In recent weeks, an IDF Intelligence Directorate Hostage Headquarters and ISA intelligence team carried out intensive intelligence research and interrogations of apprehended suspects to identify the location of the hostages in the Khan Yunis area,” the IDF said. “Following the precise intelligence information, the forces located an underground tunnel shaft, leading to a tunnel approximately 200 meters in length and 20 meters deep with several rooms where the hostages were located.”
The pressure on Hamas appears to be building. Even though the terrorist group continues to control much of northern and central Gaza, it suffers daily losses in airstrikes and clashes in places like Rafah, where IDF ground units operate. Hamas appears to be shifting operations into parts of the humanitarian area in southern Gaza designated for civilians to flee to since October.
The IDF said on July 25 that Hamas “launched numerous projectiles from the Humanitarian Area in Khan Yunis. The projectiles did not cross into Israeli territory and instead fell in the area of the UNRWA ‘Al-Qarara’ school in Khan Yunis.” Israeli forces helped coordinate with the World Health Organization as several injured civilians were evacuated to a field hospital in Deir al-Balah, an area controlled by Hamas in central Gaza.
Hamas claimed to have used its Yassin-105 anti-tank missile to target an Israeli tank in Khan Younis on July 25. It also said it targeted a D-9 IDF bulldozer in Rafah. Some bulldozers are now unmanned and remotely operated, a recent Israeli capability deployed in this war. The IDF said that one soldier from the IDF’s 401st Armored Brigade was killed in Gaza on July 25, and two were severely wounded. The total killed since the beginning of the war is now 687, and 327 have fallen since the ground offensive began in Gaza on October 27, 2023.
