A body of a 53-year-old hostage in an underground tunnel has been found by Israeli soldiers in southern Gaza, said the the military. The army was determining if another set of remains belonged to the man’s son. The discovery of Yosef AlZayadni’s body comes as Israel and Hamas are considering a ceasefire deal that would free the remaining hostages and stop the fighting in Gaza. Israel says about a third of the remaining 100 hostages have died but believes as many as half could be dead.
Yosef and his son Hamzah AlZayadni were thought to still be alive before Wednesday’s announcement, and news about their fate could ramp up pressure on Israel to move forward with a deal. The military said it found proof in the tunnel that raised serious concerns for the life of Hamzah AlZayadni, 23, suggesting he may have died in captivity. Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani, an Israeli military spokesperson, said the circumstances behind Yosef AlZayadni’s death were being investigated.
AlZayadni and three of his children were among 250 hostages taken captive following Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel, killing 1,200 people. AlZayadni had a total of 19 children and had worked for 17 years at the dairy farm of a kibbutz that was among the communities attacked, said the Hostages Families Forum, a group representing the relatives of captives. AlZayadni’s teenage children, Bilal and Aisha, were released along with about 100 hostages in a weeklong ceasefire in November 2023.
The bodies of around three dozen hostages have been recovered in Gaza and eight hostages have been rescued by the army. The Hostages Families Forum said the ceasefire deal being negotiated comes far too late for Yosef who was taken alive and should have returned the same way. The group said in a statement, “Every day in captivity poses an immediate mortal danger to the hostages”.
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