The bodies of hostages Ilan Weiss and Idan Shviti have been rescued from Gaza in a complex operation.
By Rachel Avraham
Over the weekend, the IDF recovered the bodies of Idan Shviti and Ilan Weiss. Weiss, aged 55, was murdered on October 7th, 2023, as he ran to the weapons storage room in Kibbutz Be’eri, where he lived, Arutz Sheva reported. According to the report, the terrorists then took his body to the Gaza Strip. Shviti, age 28, had attended the Nova Music Festival and was declared dead nearly a year later based on intelligence assessments, Yedioth Achronot reported.
“Idan was a talented student of sustainability and government and a courageous man. On October 7, 2023, he attended the Nova music festival, and when the terrorist attack began, he acted to evacuate and save many of the participants,” the prime minister told the Jerusalem Post. “In the course of his actions, he was murdered, and his body was kidnapped by the Hamas terrorist organization into Gaza.”
Idan had a deep connection with dogs and other animals, and was about to begin his second year studying sustainability and government at Reichman University, the Hostages Families Forum told Arutz Sheva, adding that “Idan always put others first and made sacrifices for those around him.”
According to them, “On October 7th, Idan arrived early in the morning at the Nova Festival to photograph his friends who were performing and leading workshops, but never made it inside. When the attack began, Idan helped a young man and woman he had just met escape from the site — a selfless act that ultimately led to his abduction.”
“In a complex IDF operation conducted this week, and directed by the Hostages and Missing Persons Headquarters in the Intelligence Directorate, and the ISA, the body of the deceased hostage Idan Shtivi was recovered from the Gaza Strip, along with the body of the deceased hostage Ilan Weiss,” the IDF told Arutz Sheva.
“Together with all the citizens of Israel, my wife and I send our heartfelt condolences to the dear families and share in their deep sorrow,” Netanyahu stated to the Jerusalem Post. “The campaign to bring back the hostages continues without pause. We will not rest and we will not be silent until we return all our hostages home, both the living and the fallen.”
Two weeks ago, Noga Weiss, the daughter of Ilan Weiss, spoke at a demonstration in Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square, saying, “That Saturday, when my father left the safe room at 7:15 a.m., I asked him to stay safe. He told my mother and me not to worry, that he’d be back in a few minutes. It has now been 680 days, and he still hasn’t returned. When he comes back, it will be to say goodbye forever, to be buried in the place he loved.”
She added, “Our ending will not be easy, but we deserve closure. We are waiting to complete this circle, to have a place to go and feel our father. Even the right to mourn must be fought for. Reality is broken, but we will not give up. We will not give up the values of our country, ourselves, or each other. My father saved us. Now it’s our turn to save him.”
Photo from DawnNews English: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFPvzVajCy8&t=1s
