Shlomo Mansour, the oldest Israeli hostage held in Gaza, was murdered during the Hamas-led massacre on Oct. 7, and his body was taken into the enclave by the attackers, the IDF said Tuesday.
The IDF said the determination was based on intelligence gathered over months and was recently confirmed by a panel of experts from the Health Ministry, police and Religious Affairs Ministry. Testimonies from recently released hostages also contributed to the decision.
Mansour, 86, was abducted from his home in Kibbutz Kissufim during the attack. His wife, Mazal, was also taken but managed to escape. Mansour, who weighed only 57 kilograms (125 pounds) and was without his hearing aids, was forced into Gaza in his own car.
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“This is one of the hardest days in our history,” Kibbutz Kissufim said in a statement. “Shlomo was more than a member of our community—he was a father, grandfather, true friend and the beating heart of the kibbutz. His smile, humility and warmth were an inspiration to all of us. Our hearts are broken over our failure to bring him back alive. The entire community is grieving our loss.”
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Sholom Mansour and his wife with two of his grandchildren
(Photo: Courtesy of the family)
Mansour's granddaughter's Instagram Story
Born in Iraq, Mansour survived the Farhud, a 1941 pogrom against Iraqi Jews, as a young boy. He later became one of the founders of Kibbutz Kissufim, a farming community near the Gaza border. He and his wife had five children and 12 grandchildren.