IDF Recovers Bodies of Slain Hostages Weiss & Shtivi

Forces from the military and Shin Bet security service recovered the body of slain hostage Ilan Weiss in an operation in the Gaza Strip, the Israel Defense Forces said last week.

His body was recovered along with the remains of a second hostage, later identified as Idan Shtivi, a Nova festival photographer.

Weiss, 56, was killed on the morning of Oct. 7, 2023, while defending Kibbutz Be’eri from Hamas-led terrorists as a member of the emergency response team.

His wife, Shiri, and daughter, Noga, were also taken hostage and later freed during a weeklong truce and hostage release deal in November 2023. Noga was drafted into the IDF in May 2024.

Shtivi, 28, was a nature lover and photography enthusiast who had been studying sustainability and government at Herzliya’s Reichman University.

His body was identified at the Abu Kabir Institute of Forensic Medicine.

Shtivi left the Nova Festival in his car with two friends, but was blocked by the terrorists on the road heading north. He then turned the car around and started driving south, but was driven off the road, lost control of the vehicle and hit a tree.

He was last seen in that location, and the car was later found full of bullet holes and blood. His friends’ bodies were found at the scene.

The IDF said the complex recovery mission in Gaza was carried out by Southern Command forces with intelligence provided by the Military Intelligence Directorate, the Shin Bet, and the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.

The forum mourned Weiss as “a loving and devoted family man, [who] excelled at cooking and loved to barbecue.” The group added in its statement: “The hostages are running out of time. We must return all of them home, now!”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent his condolences to the families of Weiss and the other recovered hostage, while praising security forces for their “determination and courage.”

He reiterated that Israel “will not rest until all hostages are returned — the living and the dead.”

According to official figures, 48 hostages now remain in captivity in the Gaza Strip, of whom 20 are believed to be alive, and about two of whom the government has expressed “grave concern.” The remaining hostages have been confirmed dead by the military.

Defense Minister Israel Katz, in a statement, noted that Weiss “bravely managed the defensive battle in Be’eri and prevented an even greater disaster, alongside other heroes.”

Katz also hailed the “heroic” work of IDF and Shin Bet forces in the mission, adding, “We will not rest, and we will not stop until everyone returns home.”