
Israel says the remains of 3 hostages have been recovered from Gaza
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — The Israeli military says it has recovered the remains of three hostages held in the Gaza Strip. It identified them as Yonatan Samerano, 21; Ofra Keidar, 70; and Shay Levinson, 19.
All three were killed during Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack into Israel that ignited the ongoing war. The militant group is still holding 50 hostages, less than half of them believed to be alive.
Kobi Samerano said in a Facebook post that his son’s remains were returned on what would have been Yonatan’s 23rd birthday.
“The campaign to return the hostages continues consistently and is happening alongside the campaign against Iran,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.