The first phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal promised the return of thirty-three hostages. Twenty-five have come home alive as well as the bodies of a grandfather, a mother and her two precious children. Now, Israel will be shedding tears again as it prepares to receive four more murdered hostages on Thursday.

Their fates appear to have been sealed in the earliest hours of the October 7 massacre. In Kibbutz Nir Oz, Ohad Yahalomi, 49, faced an impossible choice. His safe room’s door handle was broken, so he positioned himself outside with a handgun to protect his wife and three children. His wife Batsheva and two of their children would later escape during a chaotic flight to Gaza, running for hours in pajamas and flip-flops. Their 12-year-old son Eitan was held captive until his release during a brief ceasefire in November 2023.

At Kibbutz Nahal Oz, the Idan family’s safe room became the scene of a tragedy that would mark their final moments together. Tsahi Idan, 49, and his daughter Maayan, 18, were holding their door shut when terrorists opened fire through it. Maayan was killed instantly, falling into her father’s arms before he himself was dragged away to Gaza.

For Itzik Elgarat, 69, of Kibbutz Nir Oz, the last connection to the outside world came through a phone call to his brother Danny, a former Ashdod police commander. “Danny, this is the end, this is the end,” were his final words after being shot through his safe room door. By noon, his phone signal was traced to Gaza.

The eldest of the four, Shlomo Mantzur, 85, has already been confirmed dead by Israeli authorities, though his body was taken to Gaza. A longtime resident of Kibbutz Kissufim who managed the community’s chicken coop, Mantzur was known for crafting gifts for his grandchildren. His wife Mazal managed to escape the attack that claimed at least eight other residents of their kibbutz.

Top row (L-R) Tsahi Idan and Ohad Yahalomi; Bottom row (L-R) Itzik Elgarat and Shlomo Mantzur (Courtesy)