Israel Defense Forces located the bodies of hostages Youssef and Hamza Ziyadne during military operations in the Gaza Strip, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz confirmed on Wednesday evening.
In a statement shared by the Defense Ministry, Katz expressed his “deep condolences to the Ziyadne family upon the discovery of the bodies of Youssef and Hamza, who were kidnapped by Hamas murderers on Oct. 7 and were rescued in a heroic operation by our soldiers.”
“We continue to do everything to fulfill our supreme moral obligation—the return of all the hostages, living and dead, to Israeli soil,” he added.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed his “deep sorrow over the bitter news that the Ziyadne family received today.
“We hoped and worked for the safe return of the four members of the family held hostage by Hamas,” the Israeli leader added. “I send heartfelt condolences to the family. I thank the IDF and Israel Security Agency for their determined action for the return of our hostages.
“We will continue to make every effort to return all of our hostages, the living and the deceased,” the premier’s statement concluded.
The IDF and Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) confirmed that Youssef’s remains were found in a tunnel in the Rafah area of southern Gaza. The statement did not immediately confirm Hamza’s death, though it said that the findings in the tunnel raised “serious concerns” for his life.
“Our hearts ache,” Ali Ziyadne, Youssef’s brother, told Israel’s Ynet news outlet. He added, “We wanted them to return to our family alive, but unfortunately they returned dead. Aisha and her brother Bilal were waiting to embrace them. This is a difficult and shocking disaster.”
Youssef Ziyadne, 53, and his children Hamza, 22, Bilal, 18, and Aisha, 17, residents of the Israeli Bedouin community of Rahat, were abducted by Hamas terrorists during the massacre on Oct. 7, 2023, while they were working in Kibbutz Holit near the border with Gaza.
Bilal and Aisha were released as part of the November 2023 ceasefire agreement between Jerusalem and Hamas after 55 days in captivity.
On Oct. 7, 2023, some 25 residents of Rahat—the largest Muslim Bedouin city in Israel’s Negev Desert—headed to Gaza-border kibbutzim Holit and Kibbutz Sufa to work and did not return.
They were among the 1,200 people killed by Hamas during its invasion of Israel that morning. Thousands more were wounded, and more than 250 were taken back to the Strip as hostages, including six Bedouins.
According to Israeli estimates, there are 98 hostages still in Hamas captivity in Gaza, including 94 abducted during the Oct. 7 attacks.
Of the 251 hostages taken on Oct. 7, 157 have been returned or rescued, and Hamas is believed to be holding 36 bodies, 34 of them taken on Oct. 7 and the remaining two being IDF soldiers Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul, who were kidnapped in 2014.