From the Liveblog of
Friday, August 29, 2025
IDF recovers body of slain hostage Ilan Weiss, remains of another captive, from Gaza
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IDF and Shin Bet forces recovered the body of slain hostage Ilan Weiss in an operation in the Gaza Strip, the military says in a statement.
His body was recovered along with the remains of a second hostage, whose identity is not yet public, the IDF says.
The identification process for the second recovered body is still ongoing at the Abu Kabir National Institute of Forensic Medicine.
Weiss, 56, was killed on the morning of October 7, 2023, while defending Kibbutz Be’eri as a member of the emergency response team.
His wife Shiri and daughter Noga were also taken hostage and later freed during a weeklong truce and hostage release deal in November 2023.
The IDF says the complex recovery mission in Gaza was carried out by Southern Command forces with intelligence provided by the Military Intelligence Directorate, the Shin Bet, and the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.
Netanyahu sends his condolences to the families and praises security forces for their “determination and courage.”
He reiterates that Israel “will not rest until all hostages are returned — the living and the dead.”
According to official figures, 48 hostages now remain in captivity in the Gaza Strip, of whom 20 are believed to be alive.
The Times of Israel Community.