The Israeli military said on Friday that Hamza Ziyadne, an Arab Israeli citizen held hostage in Gaza, was killed in the Palestinian enclave, as efforts by mediators to broker a truce between Israel and Hamas to free the hostages met with little success.
More than 15 months after a Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023 sparked the Gaza war, some 98 hostages remain in Gaza; Israeli authorities assume that around 36 are dead.
Confirmation of Mr Ziyadne’s death comes just a day after family and friends buried his father, 53-year-old Youssef Ziyadne, who was also taken hostage. The Israeli military said their bodies were found together in a tunnel under the southern Gaza city of Rafah along with their dead captors. It was not clear when they were found.
Before they were found, none of the hostages were considered dead by Israeli officials, who sought to use intelligence to assess the condition of the remaining hostages. This could further escalate fears among the families of the remaining prisoners in Gaza that their relatives may have already suffered the same fate.
It was not immediately clear how the Ziyadnes died: some of the hostages were killed in Israeli airstrikes, while Israel said others were executed by their captors. Nadav Shoshani, an Israeli military spokesman, said on Wednesday – after Youssef’s death was confirmed – that the army was still investigating.
Arab citizens of Israel, like Mr. Ziyadne, were not spared in the attack by Hamas. At least 17 were killed and several were taken hostage. According to Israel, about 1,200 people were killed in the attack and 250 were taken hostage.
Many, like Mr. Ziyadne, belonged to the Bedouin Arab minority, a group that has long lived on the margins of Israeli society. Historically nomadic herders, many Bedouins now live in a constellation of towns and villages across southern Israel, some of which lack basic government services like running water and electricity.
Hamza Ziyadne, 23, was taken hostage along with his father and two younger siblings, Bilal and Aisha, while at the Israeli kibbutz where his father worked. Bilal, 18, and Aisha, 17, were freed during a week-long truce in November 2023 in which 105 Israeli and foreign hostages — mostly women and children — were freed in exchange for 240 Palestinian prisoners.
The Hostage Family Forum, which represents relatives of the captives, said Hamza Ziyadne was survived by his wife and two children. In a statement, the group described him as “a nature lover who had a deep affection for animals and was loved by his friends.”
“Four members of the family were kidnapped, and only two returned alive,” the group said in a statement. “Youssef and Hamza, who survived the hellish period of captivity in Gaza, could have been saved by an earlier agreement.”
Months of efforts to bridge the gap between Israel and Hamas over a cease-fire agreement and the release of hostages have not borne fruit. Qatar and Egypt led the negotiations, which are also being mediated by the Biden administration.
On Thursday, Mr. Biden said “real progress” had been made in the talks, without giving further details. Officials from all sides have repeatedly expressed optimism about progress over the past few months, only to see hopes dashed days later by new obstacles.
For months, Israel and Hamas have been setting seemingly irreconcilable terms for an agreement. Hamas has demanded an end to the war and a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza as part of any deal to release the hostages. Israeli leaders have said they will not end the war until Hamas is destroyed in Gaza and have vowed to maintain major security control there.
Michael D. Shear in Washington contributed reporting.
