The body of hostage Elad Katzir has been recovered from Gaza and returned to Israel, a spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) revealed on Saturday.
According to the IDF, the 47-year-old farmer from Kibbutz Nir Oz was murdered in captivity by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror group. The operation to retrieve the body out of Gaza’s Khan Yunis was carried out by an elite squad of IDF commandos following intelligence provided by the Shin Bet.
Katzir, along with his mother, Hanna, 77, and 253 other captives, were taken hostage to Gaza on Oct. 7. She was released along with 104 other hostages during a six-day ceasefire at the end of November. His father, Avraham, was murdered in the kibbutz.
In January, the PIJ posted a video online showing Katzir alive, saying, “I was close to dying more than once. It’s a miracle I’m still alive… I want to tell my family that I love them very much and I miss them very much.”
Katzir’s sister, Carmit, took to Facebook to blame Israeli authorities for her brother’s death, saying her brother would have still been alive had Israel agreed to a hostage deal sooner. “Our leadership is cowardly and driven by political consideration, which is why this deal has not happened yet. Prime minister, war cabinet, and coalition members: look at yourself in the mirror and say if your hands didn’t spill blood,” she wrote.”
Hamas has so far refused to back down from its demands for a full ceasefire and a full withdrawal of IDF troops from Gaza.
