The body of a father whose three children were taken captive by Hamas has been found in the Gaza Strip and brought back to Israel.
Youssef Ziyadne’s body was found in an underground tunnel in the city of Rafah in southern Gaza, according to the Israeli military, who said that findings were also related to one of his children, Hamza, which “raise serious concerns for his life”. There had been hopes both would be found alive.
His other two children, Bilal and Aisha, were released during the only hostage exchange deal in November 2023.
Youssef Ziyadne’s body was found in an underground tunnel in the city of Rafah
Israel and Hamas are engaged in indirect talks in Qatar to secure the exchange of around 100 hostages taken during the October 7 massacre in southern Israel and to negotiate a ceasefire to end the ongoing war. While there has been a diplomatic flurry of activity, with an international task force including the US, the UK and Germany meeting to push for a deal, there are still unresolved issues.
The discovery of Ziyadne is another heartbreak for the families of those taken captive, many of whom have been holding protests calling for the government to bring about their safe return. Their families have been notified, with Ziyadne’s brother telling Israeli media: “Our hearts are broken.”
While the Israeli military said only the father had been discovered, Israel Katz, the Israeli defence minister, said both father and son had been recovered “in a heroic operation”. He and the military expressed their condolences to the family.
“We wanted them to return to the family alive, but sadly, they have come back deceased,” Ali Ziyadne, Youssef’s brother, told Israeli news site Ynet. The family are residents of the southern Bedouin town of Rahat. They were abducted from a kibbutz where they were working.
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“Aisha and her brother Bilal were waiting to embrace them. This is a horrific and shocking tragedy,” Ali Ziyadne said.
Ahead of the inauguration of Donald Trump on January 20, Anthony Blinken, the outgoing US secretary of state, said that they were “very close to a hostage and ceasefire agreement in the Middle East,” adding that he hoped the Biden administration could “get it over the line” in the coming weeks.
On Tuesday, Trump warned that if all the hostages Hamas is still holding were not released by his inauguration on January 20, “all hell will break out in the Middle East”.
The Israeli military also announced the deaths of three soldiers in fighting in northern Gaza, where it has been conducting a major offensive since October 6.
The latest deaths bring the military’s losses to 399 in the ground campaign it launched in Gaza on October 27, 2023.