Israel recovers bodies of 6 hostages — including US citizen — in Hamas tunnel

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) says it has recovered the bodies of six hostages killed by Hamas militants in Gaza – including an Israeli-American captive.

In a tweet on Sunday, IDF named the victims as Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi, and Ori Danin.

Goldberg-Polin was a California native who was taken at gunpoint at the Nova music festival on October 7, 2023 — the day Hamas launched the surprise attack on Israel.

Daniel Hagari, IDF spokesperson, said the hostages were “brutally murdered by Hamas terrorists, a short while before we reached them”.

Hagari said the six bodies were found in tunnels under the enclave.

“I am devastated and outraged,” US President Joe Biden said.

“Hersh was among the innocents brutally attacked while attending a music festival for peace in Israel on October 7. He lost his arm helping friends and strangers during Hamas’ savage massacre.

“Make no mistake, Hamas leaders will pay for these crimes. And we will keep working around the clock for a deal to secure the release of the remaining hostages.”

News of more hostage deaths piles pressure on Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli prime minister, as anger inside Israel swells over the failure to strike a ceasefire deal.

The prime minister has insisted that a deal can only be signed when Israel’s safety is assured.