The bodies of Ohad Yahalomi, Tsahi Idan, Itzik Elgarat, and Shlomo Mantzur are expected to return to Israel this Thursday.
By World Israel News Staff
The bodies of four deceased Israeli hostages are expected to be returned to Israel this Thursday, marking the final exchange of the first phase of the ongoing hostage deal.
Ohad Yahalomi, 49, Tsahi Idan, 49, Itzik Elgarat, 68, and Shlomo Mantzur, 85, were all kidnapped from their homes in southern Israel on October 7th, 2023.
While all of the men are now believed to be dead, at least two of them are believed to have been abducted alive.
Yahalomi engaged in a gun battle with Hamas terrorists, sitting outside of his home’s safe room in Kibbutz Nir Oz, in order to protect his family.
He was shot in the leg by terrorists. His wife and two of his children were able to escape, while his 12-year-old son, Eitan, was captured by terrorists.
Eitan Yahalomi was released in a December 2023 hostage deal, but his father remained in the Strip.
The Yahalomi family has insisted that the wounds Ohad sustained were survivable.
Idan was not injured during his abduction from Kibbutz Nahal Oz, indicating that he was murdered in captivity.
According to eyewitness testimony from Idan’s wife, the father-of-three was kidnapped alive.
Terrorists had stormed their home, firing through their safe room door and killing 18-year-old Ma’ayan Idan, who died in her father’s arms.
Gali Idan managed to protect her other two children, but the terrorists abducted her husband.
Elgarat, who holds both Israeli and Danish citizenship, had called his brother from the safe room of his home on October 7th.
Danny Elgarat told Hebrew-language media that Itzik was “hysterical” and had been wounded in the arm by gunfire.
The last thing he told his brother was “this is the end.”
Mantzur immigrated from Iraq to Israel as a teenager. He was married to his wife Mazel, who escaped the onslaught physically unharmed, for more than 60 years.
The IDF recently said that Mantzur was murdered by terrorists on October 7th at his home in Kibbutz Kissufim, and that his body was abducted to the Gaza Strip.
Mantzur’s family had previously believed that he was kidnapped alive and had hoped for his safe return.
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