Israeli army confirms settler believed hostage in Gaza was killed in Oct. 7 attacks

By Anadolu staff

JERUSALEM (AA) - The Israeli army announced on Friday that a DNA analysis of the body of a settler, previously believed to be held captive in the Gaza Strip, confirmed that he was killed in the Oct. 7 attacks.

"Military representatives, along with members of the Institute of Forensic Medicine and Health Ministry, notified Elyakim Libman’s family of the findings today," The Times of Israeli daily cited a military statement as saying.

His death was based on "findings that were identified following a complex investigation" carried out by the army, police, Institute of Forensic Medicine and Health Ministry, the statement added.

"Dozens of graves were opened in the last few weeks until they found DNA from part of Libman's mouth in a grave in the Gush Dan area," The Jerusalem Times reported.

Before confirming that Libman was not a captive in Gaza, Israeli media were reporting on 133 Israeli hostages held in Gaza.

Hamas says that 70 hostages out of 240 were killed in indiscriminate Israeli airstrikes during its ongoing war on Gaza, while the Palestinian movement released 105 hostages during a prisoner exchange deal with Israel last November.

Hamas demands an end to Israel’s deadly offensive on the Gaza Strip and the withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the territory for any hostage-prisoner swap deal with Tel Aviv.

Indirect talks between Israel and Hamas have taken place in both Egypt and Qatar aimed at reaching a deal that includes a prisoner swap, under which Israeli captives would be released in exchange for the release of Palestinians from Israeli jails.

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7 cross-border attack by Hamas, which killed some 1,200 people.

More than 34,600 Palestinians have since been killed and over 77,700 others injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

More than six months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which in January issued an interim ruling that ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio in Istanbul