By Christian Edwards, Dana Karni, NCS
(NCS) — Israel on Tuesday stated it had acquired the remains of Itay Chen, the final US-Israeli hostage held in Gaza, as half of the US-brokered ceasefire deal that got here into impact final month.
Israel stated it acquired a coffin containing the remains through the Red Cross in Gaza and later transported it to Israel’s nationwide forensics laboratory the place he was recognized.
The affirmation of the id of the remains means solely seven deceased hostages stay in Gaza.
Chen, a employees sergeant who served within the Armored Corps, had been stationed on the Gaza border on October 7. His remains have been taken into Gaza after he was killed, the Israel Defense Forces stated.
Chen was the second of three sons, a former Boy Scout and an avid basketball participant, his father Ruby Chen beforehand informed NCS.
“The government of Israel shares in the deep sorrow of the Chen family and of all the families of the fallen hostages,” the workplace of the Israeli prime minister stated.
The newest switch comes after Hamas handed over the our bodies of three deceased hostages on Sunday. US President Donald Trump confirmed one of them was Omer Neutra, an Israeli-American dual nationwide killed within the preliminary Hamas-led assault on October 7, 2023.
Last Thursday, Hamas launched the remains of two different hostages, recognized as Amiram Cooper, 84, and Sahar Baruch, 25.
The solidity of the Trump-brokered ceasefire had beforehand been examined after Hamas stated it handed over the remains of three deceased people on October 28, however Israeli authorities have been unable to establish them as belonging to any of the hostages.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated Hamas was resorting to “pathetic attempts to deceive us, the United States, and the world” and instructed the navy to hold out “immediate, powerful strikes” in Gaza. Those strikes killed a minimum of 104 Palestinians, together with dozens of youngsters, in what was the deadliest day for the reason that starting of the ceasefire.
Since then, nevertheless, the releases of the remains of hostages have proceeded as deliberate, and the ceasefire has largely held. In an interview with “60 Minutes” that aired Sunday, Trump stated the ceasefire he helped dealer is “not fragile” and was “very solid,” warning that “Hamas could be taken out immediately if they don’t behave.”
Meanwhile, Israel has been rocked by a scandal surrounding Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi, the navy’s prime lawyer tasked with implementing the rule of legislation inside the armed forces. She has been positioned underneath arrest as half of a legal investigation into the leak of a video exhibiting the alleged abuse, together with sexual abuse, of Palestinian detainees in Israel’s infamous Sde Teiman navy jail.
The video was first aired by Israel’s Channel 12 in August 2024. In May of that yr, NCS spoke to 3 whistleblowers who detailed allegations of abuse on the jail. A month later, Israel stated it could start phasing out the ability.
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