Italy confirms 1 citizen killed in Hamas onslaught, 2 thought kidnapped

Italy says one of three Italian-Israeli citizens believed to be kidnapped by Hamas was killed in Israel during the Hamas terror assault on the Be’eri kibbutz in southern Israel.

The Italian foreign ministry reports that DNA tests conducted by Israeli authorities confirmed the death of Eviatar Moshe Kipnis, 65. The ministry says it remains committed to locating Kipnis’s wife and another Italian-Israeli citizen who remain unaccounted for.

The Kipnis family sounded the alarm about Kipnis and his wife, 60-year-old Lilach Lea Havron, after their kibbutz was stormed by Hamas terrorists on October 7. At least 120 people were killed there and an unknown number were taken hostage.

The family initially believed the couple, plus eight members of Havron’s family, were among the hostages since their bodies weren’t initially recovered and their cellphones were traced to Gaza.