Israel Police and the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) said on Tuesday that prosecutors intend to indict a Hamas terrorist who held the remains of an Israeli soldier for nearly a decade.
Authorities identified the terrorist as Ibrahim Hilo, a member of Hamas’s Shati Battalion, who was arrested in a covert operation as part of efforts to recover the body of Staff Sgt. Oron Shaul, who was killed in battle in Gaza’s Shuja’iyya neighborhood on July 20, 2014, during Operation Protective Edge, and his body seized by Hamas.
According to investigators, Hilo held Shaul’s remains in a civilian building in Gaza City. The body was recovered in January 2025 during a joint Shin Bet and Israeli military intelligence operation, shortly before a ceasefire took effect, and returned to Israel for burial.
Police said a prosecutor’s declaration was filed in Beersheba District Court after sufficient evidence was compiled, and that Hilo faces serious security-related charges.
“The Shin Bet, the IDF and the Israel Police will continue to carry out operations, arrests and investigations to fully exploit all intelligence leads related to those involved in terrorist activity and the planning of attacks,” the statement concluded.
