IDF Spokesperson Rear Admiral said Friday that the bodies of Shani Louk, Amit Buskila and Itzik Gelenter were recovered from the Gaza Strip.
The bodies of the three Israelis abducted to Gaza on October 7 from the Nova music festival, were returned to Israel in a joint IDF and Shin Bet special operation.
"Amit, Itzik, and Shani were celebrating life at the Nova festival when they were forced to flee. They reached the Mefalsim road, where, according to verified and reliable information, they were brutally murdered by terrorists. Their bodies were then taken to the Gaza Strip," Hagari stated.
According to information available so far about the dramatic operation on Thursday night, the bodies of the hostages were discovered by IDF special units and Shin Bet forces that entered the Gaza Strip. There were no encounters with terrorists during the operation, and it appears no terrorists were present at the location. This morning, the bodies were sent for examination at the National Center of Forensic Medicine in Tel Aviv, and by noon, the results confirmed the victims' identities. Their families were then notified.
The bodies of the three hostages were recovered based on information provided during Shin Bet interrogations of arrested terrorists in Gaza, combined with intelligence guidance from the Prisoners and Missing Persons Division of the Military Intelligence Directorate. The rescue was also facilitated by advanced terrain analysis. The IDF is expected to continue operations in Gaza in the coming days.
"The IDF and Shin Bet are currently employing all operational and intelligence means, taking operational risks, to fulfill the paramount national mission of returning all hostages," the IDF stated in an official announcement about the rescue operation.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu conveyed his condolences following the IDF spokesperson's announcement: "Our hearts are broken over this immense loss. My wife Sara and I mourn with the families. Our hearts stand strong with them in this heavy moment of grief. We will bring back all of our abducted, the dead and the wounded alike. I commend our courageous forces who, in a determined operation, returned sons and daughters to their borders."
The body of 23-year-old Shani Louk, a German citizen, was found days after the terror attack. The abduction of her body garnered extensive coverage in the international media, with images of her body being repeatedly broadcasted lying in a Palestinian vehicle while Gaza residents struck and spat on it. A few days after the abduction, Louk's mother told Bild newspaper in Germany that she received information that Shani was still alive and urged swift action to rescue her. However, at the end of October, the IDF informed her family that she was murdered.
Amit Buskila, 28, from Ashdod, was abducted to the Gaza Strip from the Mefalsim area in the border region after fleeing the Nova festival when Hamas terrorists overran the area. Buskila's friend, Eden Wessely, went searching for her at the party site upon hearing reports of the terrorists' attack. She captured photos that served as evidence in an investigation published by The New York Times on the same day detailing the terror attack.
Itzik Gelenter, 56, from the community of Erez, was abducted to the Gaza Strip on October 7 from the Nova festival.
First published: 18:35, 05.17.24