Hostage body found in Gaza Tunnel, Soldier Casualties Report Since Oct 7
Sad news swept the State of Israel yesterday with a government report listing the casualties of soldiers since October the 7th, and the discovery of a body of a hostage.
According to the report, since the beginning of the war, 891 IDF soldiers have been killed, and 5,569 have been injured. Hundreds of these are multiple amputees. Three soldiers were killed in training accidents, and 17 additional soldiers are reported to have committed suicide, unable to bear what they witnessed in the war. Yesterday alone saw three soldiers falling in combat raising the ground offensive in Gaza to 401.
For the first time since the war broke out, the number of hostages, dead or alive and still in captivity, was reduced to double figures. The discovery of the body of Israeli Arab Youssef Ziyadne who was abducted by terrorists on October 7th, was recovered by the Israeli military from a tunnel in Gaza bringing the total of captives to 99.
The 53-year old father was kidnapped along with two of his teenage children and 22-year old Hamza while working in a Kibbutz near the Gaza border. Although 18-year old Bilal and his 17-year old sister Aisha were released in November 2023, after more than 50 days in Hamas captivity, yesterday the extended family said they have reason to believe that the older brother Hamza was also recovered, though the country awaits for the IDF to confirm the news.
The Bedouin family who live in the southern city of Rahat, have been very prominent at Tel Aviv’s Hostage Square for the last 15 months, bringing to public attention that even though they are Arabs, for terrorists, because they are Israeli, they are treated no differently than Jews.
