The body of the last hostage held in the Gaza Strip, police Master Sgt. Ran Gvili was identified on the ground by Israeli forensic experts, according to the military.
The IDF began exhuming hundreds of bodies at a Muslim cemetery in eastern Gaza City over the weekend, and until today, had tested around 250 of them for a potential match to Gvili.
A few hours ago, dentists deployed to the cemetery were able to confirm that the dental structure of one body matched Gvili’s. In addition, fingerprints and other tests were carried out to confirm his identity, according to the military.
Gvili’s body is now being brought back to Israel for burial.
The IDF says it will be returning all of the other exhumed bodies to their graves and cleaning up the cemetery, out of respect for the dead.
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From the Liveblog of
Monday, January 26, 2026
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