The body of Omer Neutra, a US citizen, has been returned by Hamas along with two other deceased hostages, President Donald Trump confirmed on Sunday.
Speaking to reporters on Air Force One returning to Washington from Florida, Trump also said he had spoken to Neutra’s parents.
“We got Neutra from New York, from the United States, and I spoke to his parents,” the president said.
“They’re excited in one sense, but obviously not so great in another sense. We’re very happy that we did it. We got three. We got three bodies back today that they found, and we’re looking for the rest,” Trump added.
Neutra had joined the Israeli army in 2020 after a gap year in Israel and attended Binghamton University.
RED CROSS RECEIVES ‘SEVERAL CASES OF DECEASED HOSTAGES’ IN GAZASTRIP, IDF SAYS
An image of Omer Neutra is shown during his memorial service on Tuesday, December 3, 2024 at the Midway Jewish Center in Syosset, NY (AP Photo/Philip Marcelo)
Earlier Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced that Israel had received the remains of three Israeli hostages through the Red Cross; According to a statement, the remains were recovered by IDF and Shin Bet forces in the Gaza Strip.
The announcement said the bodies would be transferred to Israel, where they will be honored in a military ceremony led by the military chief rabbi.
They are then taken to the Ministry of Health’s National Center for Forensic Medicine for identification. Once the process is complete, official notices will be delivered to families.
All families of the deceased hostages have been informed and the government expressed its deep condolences, issuing a statement saying its “hearts are with them at this difficult time.”
RED CROSS RECEIVES ‘SEVERAL CASES OF DECEASED HOSTAGES’ IN GAZASTRIP, IDF SAYS
President Donald Trump announced an agreement between Israel and Hamas to release the hostages. (Leon Neal/Getty; Ahmad Gharabli/AFP via Getty)
The official statement also reaffirmed Israel’s continued commitment to bringing all hostages home, stating that efforts “will continue relentlessly and will not stop until the last hostage is brought home.”
The Israeli public was also urged to respect the families’ privacy and avoid the spread of unverified information, with updates coming only from official sources.
While the identities of the bodies have not yet been confirmed, Hamas said they were three Israeli soldiers.
HAMAS hands over three deceased hostages to the Red Cross, Israel says
Hamas terrorists emerge and escort Red Cross vehicles carrying three Israeli hostages to be released as part of the ceasefire. (TPS-IL)
So far, Hamas has returned 17 deceased hostages since the ceasefire began on October 10. But eleven other hostages are believed to still be in Gaza.
Per Reuters, Israel claimed that Hamas was slow to deliver the deceased bodies, while Hamas said it is working as quickly as possible but under difficult conditions.
Otherwise, according to reports, before the hostages’ release on Sunday, Israeli airstrikes hit Gaza, killing one person.
Hamas has not yet handed over all the dead hostages to Israel. (Moiz Salhi/Anadolu via Getty Images)
The Israeli army claimed its plane struck a militant who posed a threat to its forces, while Al-Ahli Hospital said one man had been killed in the airstrike in Gaza City, according to reports.
HAMAS TRANSFER REMAINS OF HOSTAGE WHICH WERE FOUND ALMOST 2 YEARS AGO
Israeli soldiers inspect the burned cars of festival goers at the site of an attack on the Nova Festival by Hamas gunmen from Gaza, near Israel’s border with the Gaza Strip, in southern Israel, October 13, 2023. (REUTERS/Amir Cohen)
“There are still Hamas pockets in the areas under our control in Gaza, and we are systematically eliminating them,” Netanyahu said during an Israeli broadcast.
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Under the ceasefire agreement, Hamas had agreed to hand over the remains of 28 dead hostages in exchange for the bodies of 360 Palestinian militants killed in the Gaza war.
