The remains of the last Israeli hostage in Gaza have been found.
The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said in a statement it had retrieved the body of police officer Ran Gvili and that his family had been informed.
Identification of the remains was confirmed by the National Institute of Forensic Medicine, in cooperation with the Israeli police, and the military rabbinate, the IDF said.
Mr Gvili, 24, was a sergeant first class in the Israeli police special forces, who was killed at the Alumim kibbutz during the October 7 attacks in 2023, before his body was taken to Gaza.
The announcement that his remains had been found and identified came a day after Israel’s government said the military was conducting a “large-scale operation” in a northern Gaza cemetery to locate them.
The discovery of his remains marks the return of the last remaining hostage held in Gaza, fulfilling a key condition of the first phase of Donald Trump‘s peace plan.
Mr Gvili’s family had urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to enter the second phase of the plan until his remains were recovered.
Now Mr Netanyahu has hailed the return of Mr Gvili as “an incredible achievement”, adding that “I promised we would bring everyone home and we have brought everyone home”.
Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that has governed Gaza, emphasised its compliance with the peace deal.
Mr Gvili, 24, was a sergeant first class in the Israeli police special forces
Spokesperson Hazem Qassem said: “The discovery of the body of the last Israeli prisoner in Gaza confirms Hamas’s commitment to all the requirements of the ceasefire agreement on the Gaza Strip, including the prisoner exchange process and its complete closure as stipulated in the agreement.
“The movement will continue to adhere to all aspects of the agreement, including facilitating the work of the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza and ensuring its success.
“We call on the mediators and the United States to compel the occupation to cease its violations of the agreement and implement its required obligations.”
Ahead of the discovery, an Israeli military official revealed there were “several intelligence leads” regarding the possible location of the police officer’s remains.
Houses destroyed by war in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip. Pic: Reuters
A “targeted operation” was under way in northern Gaza, they added.
Mr Netanyahu’s office said on Sunday that, once the search was done, Israel would open the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt.
But a government spokesperson gave no immediate answer when asked when the border crossing would now reopen.
Israel has repeatedly accused Hamas of dragging its feet in the recovery of the final hostage, but the group said it had provided all the information it had about Mr Gvili’s remains.
Mr Gvili’s body will now be returned to his family for burial.
Some 1,200 people were killed in the Hamas-led October 7 attacks, with a further 251 taken hostage.
This story originally appeared on Skynews
