Hamas Returns Bodies of Four Murdered Hostages as Phase One of Ceasefire Deal Ends 

Hamas Returns Bodies of Four Murdered Hostages as Phase One of Ceasefire Deal Ends 

Israel on Thursday confirmed the identities of four murdered hostages — whose bodies were returned overnight by Hamas — as Itzik Elgarat (69), Ohad Yahalomi (50), Shlomo Mantzur (85), and Tsahi Idan (50).

“According to forensic findings, slain hostages Ohad Yahalomi, Tsachi Idan, and Itzhak Elgarat were murdered in Hamas captivity, and Shlomo Mantzur was killed on October 7, the Prime Minister’s Office announced on Thursday morning,” the Jerusalem Post reported. “Hamas released the remains of the four hostages on Wednesday night, and the confirmation of their identities was announced on Thursday morning.”

The return of these four bodies marks the end of the first stage of the three phase hostages-for-terrorists deal. Israel released around 2,000 Palestinian terrorists, including serial murderers and rapists, under the first phase of the deal. The Iran-backed terrorist group handed over 25 living hostages and eight dead bodies in return.

Every hostage was alive on the morning of October 7.

Shlomo was murdered during the massacre, and his body was taken to Gaza. Tsachi, Ohad, and Itzik were kidnapped alive.

Every hostage Hamas returned in death is a war crime. pic.twitter.com/jmMhHOkJWN

— Hen Mazzig (@HenMazzig) February 27, 2025

The Times of Israel reported:

Four bodies released overnight by Hamas from the Gaza Strip were confirmed Thursday by Israeli authorities to be of hostages Itzik Elgarat, Ohad Yahalomi, Shlomo Mantzur, and Tsahi Idan.

The IDF informed the families of Yahalomi, Idan, Mantzur and Elgarat that their loved ones had been murdered, and that their remains were returned to Israel, the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement Thursday morning.

Yahalomi, Idan, and Elgarat were murdered while in captivity in Gaza, the PMO said, while Mantzur was killed on October 7, 2023, when his body was kidnapped and held in Gaza.

The forensic identification process was carried out by the Health Ministry’s National Forensic Medicine Center, along with the police, at the Abu Kabir Forensic Institute.

Though the bodies arrived back in Israel late at night, many people went out to line roads along the route as a mark of respect that also has been shown for other deceased hostages upon their return.

Ohad Yahalomi, French-Israeli national Ohad from Kibbutz Nir Oz, was taken hostage along with his wife, a son and two daughters on October 7, 2023. His wife and daughters displayed extraordinary courage and managed to flee their Hamas captors before they could enter Gaza. Ohad’s 12-year-old son, Eitan, returned from Gaza captivity in November 2023 as part of the hostages-for-terrorists swap.

The Israeli news website YNET published the details of the other three hostages:

Tsachi Idan, 50, was kidnapped from his home in Nahal Oz, after terrorists who broke in and murdered his oldest daughter, Maayan. Their home became a sort of terrorist headquarters, where they gathered other families from the kibbutz. From there, they handcuffed and took Tsachi and Omri Miran, and Judith and Natalie Raanan, who have since been released. (..)

Itzik, 69, was kidnapped on the day of the massacre from his home. He had been wounded by gunfire earlier and called his brother Danny to ask for help. Danny explained to him how to place a tourniquet, and then their conversation was interrupted. For a long time his condition was unknown, until it became clear that he had been kidnapped alive despite his injuries. Itzik had previously lived in Denmark, where his children live, and returned to Israel a few years ago.

Shlomo Mansour, 85, was the oldest hostage held in Gaza. He was kidnapped on October 7 from his home in Kibbutz Kissufim, when terrorists took him and handcuffed him. His wife Mazal begged for her life and managed to escape. About two weeks ago, the kibbutz announced that it had been informed by the IDF that Shlomo had been murdered on October 7 and his body taken in to Gaza. He is survived by five children and 12 grandchildren.

After 510 days of harrowing captivity, 59 hostages are still in the clutches of Hamas, of whom only 27 are thought to be alive. This includes five foreign nationals, three Thais, one Nepalese, one Tanzanian — all of whom are believed to be alive.

IDF admits ‘failures’ in October 7 probe

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Friday admitted a series of shortcomings in a preliminary investigation into its conduct in the run up to Hamas’s terror attack on October 7, 2023. “The IDF’s internal investigations into the October 7 Hamas attacks revealed widespread failures at multiple levels, including intelligence oversight, delayed military response, and lack of coordination between security agencies,” the Jerusalem Post reported Friday.

Ahead of the October 7 massacre, the IDF failed to interpret Hamas’ hostile intentions and assess its terrorist capabilities, the investigation found. Citing the probe, the Associated Press reported that “Israeli army misjudged the militant group’s intentions and underestimated its capabilities.”

“The military’s main findings were that the region’s most powerful and sophisticated military misread Hamas’ intentions, underestimated its capabilities and was wholly unprepared for the surprise attack by thousands of heavily armed militants in the early morning hours of a major Jewish holiday,” the AP NEWS concluded.

The Times of Israel summarized the IDF’s findings:

The Israel Defense Forces on Thursday presented its top-level investigations into the military’s failures during the lead-up to the Hamas terror group’s October 7, 2023, onslaught, and on the day itself.

Some 5,000 Hamas-led terrorists from the Gaza Strip burst into southern Israel on October 7, 2023, carrying out a murderous rampage of unprecedented intensity and breadth. The IDF struggled to mount a response, its own probes now specify, with bases closest to the border overrun and the chain of command broken amid the chaos.

The attack claimed the lives of some 1,200 people in Israel, with another 251 people kidnapped and much of the area devastated. Most victims were civilians.

The material released by the IDF underlines the colossal failure for years ahead of Hamas’s invasion, in the final hours before it, and in the course of the terror group’s slaughter and abductions. It was only recognized months after the invasion and slaughter that the military’s Gaza Division, the regional unit responsible for the Strip and for protecting southern Israel, was “defeated” for several hours. The chaos and confusion catastrophically slowed the fightback on the day.

The IDF details intelligence material that was insistently misinterpreted over the years; the military’s overreliance on having an early warning to prepare its defenses; the degree to which troops were massively outnumbered by the invading terrorists; and the failure to understand what Hamas was doing during the attack.

The probe also found that carnage at much greater scale was averted by the swift action taken by the Israeli Navy, which repelled Hamas’ sea-borne attack. The terrorist group used fishing boats in its attempt to breach the Israeli coastline on October 7, 2023.

“On October 7, the battle at sea ended in less than an hour thanks to a swift response from IDF Navy forces, even though no reinforcements were sent to the coastline overnight, even after warning signs emerged,” the YNET reported. “The Navy had even been instructed not to raise its alert level, yet still managed to eliminate about half of the Hamas terrorists who attempted to infiltrate by sea. However, those who did make it ashore murdered 17 people at Zikim beach, near the Gaza border.”

The IDF has released its top-level investigations into the military’s failures during the lead-up to the Hamas terror group’s October 7, 2023, onslaught, and on the day itself.

Some 5,000 Hamas-led terrorists from the Gaza Strip burst into southern Israel on October 7, 2023,…

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) February 27, 2025

The IDF on Friday vowed to thwart any future attack emanating from Gaza and to protect the southern Israeli communities along the border. The IDF Chief of the General Staff, Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi assured that the armed forces “will do everything necessary to ensure that the western Negev becomes a safe and thriving region. In the coming years, this will stand as a testament to our deep victory,” the military said in the statement Friday.

Donations tax deductible
to the full extent allowed by law.