Report: IDF Recovers Bodies of Father and Son Hostages in Gaza

Report: IDF Recovers Bodies of Father and Son Hostages in Gaza

With the terror group Hamas refusing to release hostages after more than 15 months of captivity, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) made a grim discovery this week as they recovered the bodies of father and son who were abducted by terrorists on October 7, 2023, the Israeli media reported Wednesday.

The IDF, assisted by Israel’s Shin Bet security service, retrieved the bodies of 53-year-old Youssef Ziyadne and his son, 22-year-old Hamza, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz confirmed.

The bodies were extracted from the Hamas stronghold of Rafah in southern Gaza, the Israeli media reported.

🔴 Bodies of father and son hostages Youssef (53) and Hamza Ziyadne (22) found in Gaza, says family.

They were members of Israel's Bedouin community, living in Rahat, but working on a kibbutz when Hamas attacked on Oct 7th. They were presumed alive until their bodies found. pic.twitter.com/0foNNjNyYs

— Arsen Ostrovsky 🎗️ (@Ostrov_A) January 8, 2025

Unlike the Israeli media, the IDF acknowledged the recovery of Youssef Ziyadne’s body but did not confirm the fate of his son Hamza. “IDF and ISA [Israeli Security Agency, also known as Shin Bet] located and recovered the body of the hostage Youssef Ziyadne from an underground tunnel in the area of Rafah in the Gaza Strip, and returned his body to Israel,” the military said in a press release Wednesday.

The IDF disclosed that during the recovery operation in Rafah, “findings” were made “related to Youssef’s son, Hamza Ziyadne,” which raised “serious concerns for his life.”

Yesterday, the IDF and ISA located and recovered the body of the hostage Youssef Ziyadne from an underground tunnel in the area of Rafah in Gaza, and returned his body to Israel.

Youssef, 53, was the father of 19 children and lived in Rahat. Youssef was abducted on Oct. 7, 2023… pic.twitter.com/0WK6kl80Ks

— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) January 8, 2025

The Jerusalem Post reported:

The body of hostage Youssef al-Ziyadne , 53, was discovered in the Gaza Strip, his family was told on Wednesday.

The IDF confirmed Ziyadne was discovered in an underground tunnel in Rafah adding that it discovered “findings relating to Youssef’s son (Hamza).” Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani said Youssef’s death did not appear to have been recent.

Youssef’s body was reportedly discovered alongside the body of two terrorists who were guarding him, Walla reported. The operation also reportedly led to evidence that Hamza had died, the site reported.

Youssef, who lived in Rahat, was abducted alongside three of his children from Kibbutz Holit on October 7, 2023, when Hamas invaded southern Israel and murdered some 1200 people. They were members of Israel’s Bedouin community, and Youssef had worked on the Kibbutz for 19 years before his abduction, N12 reported. (…)

President Isaac Herzog expressed his grief at Youssef’s death, writing “Our hearts ache for the immense tragedy of the Ziyadne family, who were informed of the rescue of the body of the late Youssef from Hamas captivity by security forces, and are deeply concerned for the fate of Hamza…We must continue to do everything for the urgent return of our 99 sisters and brothers – the living to their families and the fallen to the grave of Israel.”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed “deep sorrow” at the news, adding on behalf of himself and his wife, “We hoped and worked for the safe return of the four members of the family from Hamas captivity.We returned the children Bilal and Aisha on November 23, and we wanted to return Youssef and Hamza in the same way.”

“We will continue to make every effort to bring all of our hostages home – both the living and the dead,” Netanyahu promised.

Hamas holds close to 100 Israeli hostages who were taken captive on October 7, 2023. According to official Israeli sources, 64 hostages are still believed to be alive after 15 months of enduring brutal and inhuman treatment. In recent months, Hamas has released a few propaganda videos of hostages pleading for their lives in a bid to demoralize the Israeli public and force the government into an early ceasefire in Gaza.

Hamas also abducted Ziyadne’s daughter, Aisha, and son, Bilal, on October 7. Both were released in late November 2023 after Israel agreed to free convicted Palestinian terrorists in exchange for hostages.

“Youssef was abducted by Hamas terrorists during the October 7, 2023 onslaught, along with three of his children, Hamza, Bilal Ziyadne, 18, and Aisha Ziyadne, 17, while working in Kibbutz Holit,” The Times of Israel noted.

The captives of the Ziyadne family were mistreated by their Hamas despite being Israeli-Arabs, the Israeli news website YNET noted:

After Aisha and Bilal’s release, relatives shared their harrowing experience in captivity. “From what we heard, Hamas didn’t care who they abducted—Jewish or Arab—any hostage was a bargaining chip,” one family member said.

Watch Youssef Ziyadne’s brother Ali confront a Hamas-supporting senior Palestinian Authority official last March:

Ali Ziyadne, a Bedouin Israeli whose brother and nephew have been held hostage by Hamas since they were kidnapped on October 7, confronted Riyadh Mansour, the Palestinian Ambassador to the UN.

Youssef (49) and his son Hamza (21) Ziyadne are among the 134 people still held… pic.twitter.com/CkvyWgJC8d

— Bassem Eid (@realbassemeid) March 15, 2024

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