Israel received the coffins of two hostages who returned from Gaza via the Red Cross on Tuesday. Officials said the remains will be identified before being released to their families, while the military vowed to continue working to bring all remaining prisoners home.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the coffins were handed over to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and the Shin Bet force in Gaza. From there they will be transferred to Israel, where they will be received in a military ceremony with the Chief Military Rabbi.
Once received, the boxes will be deposited at the National Center for Forensic Medicine of the Ministry of Health, where they will be identified. Once the process is complete, families will receive formal notification.
The Prime Minister’s Office said all families of the deceased hostages have been informed and condolences have been expressed for their loss.
ISRAEL NAMES TWO OF FOUR DEAD HOSTAGES RETURNED BY HAMAS, HOW THEY DIED
People walk past posters of hostages being held by the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza at Hostage Square in Tel Aviv on October 10, 2025. (Ahmad Gharabli/AFP via Getty Images)
“The efforts to return our hostages continue relentlessly and will not stop until the very last hostage is returned,” Netanyahu’s office said.
The news comes on the same day that the remains of a Gaza-returned hostage were identified as Sgt. Major Tal Haimi, commander of Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak’s rapid response team.
REMAINS OF LAST FEMALE HAMAS HOSTAGE AND IDF SOLDIER TRANSFERRED TO ISRAEL
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, seen as President Donald Trump prepares to address the Knesset on October 13, 2025, in Jerusalem. (Kenny Holston – Pool/Getty Images)
Haimi was 41 when he died, and according to the IDF, he was killed in combat while defending Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak during the October 7, 2023 massacre. His remains were taken to Gaza, where they were held for more than two years.
Haimi’s family initially believed he had been taken alive, and Israel declared him dead on December 13, 2023.
REMAINS OF LAST FEMALE HAMAS HOSTAGE AND IDF SOLDIER TRANSFERRED TO ISRAEL
The Israeli army applied military protocol for the deceased hostage Tal Haimi. (IDF spokesperson’s unit)
Following the identification of Haimi’s remains, Netanyahu’s office expressed condolences to his family and reiterated its call for Hamas to release the remains of all deceased hostages for proper burial.
The IDF reiterated this call, demanding that Hamas fulfill its obligations under the agreement brokered by the Trump administration.
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On October 13, 2025, the last twenty surviving hostages returned to Israel after more than two years of captivity. Since then, the remains of 28 deceased hostages have been gradually returned, while 13 others – including US citizens Itay Chen and Omer Neutra, and soldier Hadar Goldin, whose body has been held since 2014 – remain in Gaza.
