From the Liveblog of
Saturday, April 6, 2024
IDF confirms extraction of Elad Katzir’s body, says he was murdered by Palestinian Islamic Jihad in captivity
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
The IDF confirms that the body of hostage Elad Katzir was retrieved from the Khan Younis area in the southern Gaza Strip overnight.
The IDF says that according to its intelligence, Katzir was “murdered in captivity by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror group.”
The operation to recover the body was carried out by the Commando Brigade, following intelligence provided by the Shin Bet security agency and the IDF’s Military Intelligence Directorate.
“Following an identification procedure carried out overnight by medical officials at the National Center of Forensic Medicine, IDF and Shin Bet representatives informed the family of the late Elad Katzir about the recovery of his body,” the military says.
The IDF and Shin Bet say they “express their deepest condolences to the family.”
Katzir was abducted by Islamic Jihad from Kibbutz Nir Oz during the Hamas-led October 7 onslaught.
In December, Islamic Jihad published a propaganda video showing Katzir and another hostage, Gadi Mozes, alive.
A second video with Katzir was published in early January.
