The Israeli military announced on Friday that the body of a hostage, identified as Hamza Al-Ziyadnah, had been recovered from a tunnel in southern Gaza. Hamza, 23, was confirmed as the son of Yosef Al-Ziyadnah, whose body had been found earlier in the same week. The joint statement issued by the Israel Defense Forces and the Internal Security Agency, known as Shin Bet, revealed that Hamza’s remains were discovered in the Rafah area.
This tragic development comes in the wake of the Israeli military’s retrieval of Yousef Al-Ziyadnah’s body from a tunnel in the Rafah region on Wednesday. The authorities uncovered evidence that raised serious concerns about the fate of Yousef’s son, Hamza. The Al-Ziyadnah family had been subjected to a harrowing ordeal after being kidnapped during a Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, and subsequently held captive in the Gaza Strip.
According to the official statement, “Hamza and Yosef were abducted alive on October 7 and were killed while in Hamas captivity.” The Al-Ziyadnahs belong to the Bedouin Muslim-Arab community residing in the Negev desert of southern Israel. Yousef, along with three of his children – Hamza, Bilal, and Aysha – were taken from Kibbutz Holit in southwest Israel, where they were employed. While Bilal and Aysha were eventually among the hostages released during a brief ceasefire agreement in November 2023, the fate of Yosef and Hamza took a tragic turn.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum expressed deep sorrow over the news of Hamza’s demise and reiterated the urgent need for a resolution to secure the release of the remaining captives in Gaza. The statement issued by the forum emphasized the missed opportunities for earlier agreements that could have potentially saved Yosef and Hamza. It called for expedited negotiations to ensure the safe return of all hostages, emphasizing the critical importance of seizing the current window of opportunity for their repatriation.
The plea for prompt action in securing the release of the hostages resonated with a sense of urgency and compassion for the families affected by the prolonged ordeal. The forum’s impassioned appeal underscored the significance of bringing the surviving hostages back home for rehabilitation and according the deceased the dignity of a proper burial. The sentiment conveyed in the statement stressed the need for decisive steps to be taken to avert any further delay in reaching a resolution.
As the community grapples with the devastating loss of Hamza and the lingering uncertainty surrounding the remaining hostages, the call for swift and resolute action reverberates as a beacon of hope amid the darkness of tragedy. The urgency of the situation underscores the pressing need for concerted efforts to facilitate the safe return of all those still held in captivity, ensuring that no opportunity for their release is squandered in the pursuit of peace and justice.
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