Israel identifies bodies of two Hamas hostages

Shortly before talks between US Vice President JD Vance and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Islamist Hamas handed over two more bodies of dead hostages to Israel, according to Israeli sources. The Israeli army said on Wednesday after the identification that they were the remains of the German-Israeli Tamir Adar and the senior citizen Arje Zalmanovitch.

According to the Israeli army, the German-Israeli Adar from Kibbutz Nir Oz was killed on October 7, 2023, and his body was therefore held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip. He was 38 years old at the time of the attack. The father of two children defended his kibbutz against the Islamists on the day of the attack on Israel. There was no trace of him for months. Eventually, his family was informed that he had been killed in the attack and that his body had been taken to the Gaza Strip.

The German ambassador to Israel, Steffen Seibert, explained on the online service X that Adar was now at home. Now his family can “finally lay this wonderful man to rest.”

Arje Zalmanovitch was one of the founders of Kibbutz Nir Oz. He was also kidnapped from his home on October 7, 2023. While hiding in his shelter from the Hamas attackers, he managed to send a message to one of his sons. The 85-year-old was later seen in footage of the Hamas attackers, covered in blood, being dragged off to the Gaza Strip on the back seat of a motorcycle. According to the Israeli army, he was killed while being held hostage on November 17, 2023.

Hamas handed over two coffins containing dead Israelis to the Red Cross on Tuesday. According to the ceasefire agreement with Israel pushed forward by US President Donald Trump, the Islamist Palestinian organization would have had to hand over all 28 dead hostages to Israel at once in addition to the 20 surviving hostages it handed over last week. Previously, Hamas had only gradually handed over 13 of the 28 bodies.

As part of the ceasefire agreement, Israel released almost 2,000 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons, including 250 criminals sentenced to life imprisonment. It also handed over more than 100 dead Palestinians to the Hamas authorities in the Gaza Strip.

The ceasefire agreement came into force on October 10th based on Trump’s peace plan. On Sunday, however, Israel and Hamas accused each other of violating the ceasefire. However, both sides emphasized that they would continue to commit to the ceasefire.

US Vice President Vance was optimistic about the continued existence of the ceasefire during a visit to Israel. “We are on a very good path,” he said on Tuesday. “I think everyone should be proud of where we are today.” On Wednesday, Vance wants to meet with Israeli politicians, including Prime Minister Netanyahu.