IDF says it recovered the body of hostage Itay Svirsky from Gaza

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent

Itay Svirsky (Courtesy)
Itay Svirsky (Courtesy)

The IDF says it has recovered the body of hostage Itay Svirsky from the Gaza Strip, in a joint operation with the Shin Bet security agency.

Earlier this year, the IDF said that Svirsky had been murdered in captivity by Hamas terrorists.

Svirsky, 38, was visiting his parents in their community of Kibbutz Be’eri for the holiday weekend, when Hamas terrorists launched a massacre in the community on October 7, 2023. Svirsky was abducted and his parents were murdered during the onslaught.

During his time in Gaza, he was held alongside hostages Yossi Sharabi and Noa Argamani. Sharabi was likely inadvertently killed as a result of an IDF strike, the military said earlier this year, and Argamani was rescued in the summer.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issues a statement expressing his condolences to Svirsky’s family and pledges to continue working to return all remaining 100 hostages.

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