Palestinian Islamic Jihad announced Friday evening that it will return the body of an Israeli hostage to Israel. According to Israeli authorities, six hostages’ bodies are still being held in Gaza: Dror Or, Ran Gvili, Meny Godard, Sontisek Rintalk, Lior Rudaeff and Hadar Goldin.
The group said the body will be handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which will then transfer it to Israeli security forces and the Shin Bet inside the Gaza Strip. Once brought to Israel, the body will be taken to the National Center of Forensic Medicine for identification.
A Hamas spokesperson, Hazem Qassem, said earlier Friday that the terror group is working to facilitate the transfer of all the remaining hostages’ bodies but acknowledged that there are “significant challenges and complications” in doing so.
Earlier in the day, hundreds attended the funeral of Capt. Omer Neutra, a tank commander from the 77th Battalion who was abducted near the “White House” outpost and returned to Israel from Hamas captivity earlier this week.
Among those who came to pay their respects at the Kiryat Shaul military cemetery were Nimrod Cohen, who served in the same tank and was freed in the most recent hostage deal, as well as fellow former captives Doron Steinbrecher and Idan Alexander.