Search operations to recover the bodies of Israeli hostages continue in Gaza

Israel confirms body returned by Hamas is Israeli hostage

13 Nov 2025, 20:19 · RTE.ie

Israel has confirmed that the returned body of one of the last four hostages held in Gaza was an Israeli citizen, identified as 73-year-old Meny Godard.

The prime minister's office said that after analyses, authorities had informed Mr Godard's family that "his identification has been completed".

Earlier the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed it had received the body of a hostage from the Red Cross as part of the ceasefire deal with Hamas.

The coffin was handed over in Gaza to the Israeli army and Shin Bet security service, the office said, adding that it would be sent to Tel Aviv for identification.

A view of the site as search operations for the bodies of Israeli hostages continue

Earlier, the armed wings of Hamas and Islamic Jihad said they would hand over the remains as part of the US-brokered ceasefire deal with Israel in Gaza.

Hamas said the body was found in Khan Yunis in the south of the territory.

At the start of the truce, which came into effect on 10 October, Hamas was holding 20 living hostages and 28 bodies of deceased captives.

It has since released all the living hostages and before today had returned the remains of 24 dead hostages, in line with the ceasefire terms.

In exchange, Israel has released nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners in its custody and returned the bodies of hundreds of dead Palestinians.

Israel has accused Hamas of dragging its feet in returning the bodies of deceased hostages, while the Palestinian group says the process is slow because many are buried beneath Gaza's rubble after two years of war.

US pressures UN Council to adopt Trump's Gaza peace plan

The United States has called on the UN Security Council to unite and back its draft resolution aimed at bolstering President Donald Trump's peace plan for Gaza, warning that Palestinians could otherwise suffer "grave" consequences.

"Attempts to sow discord now - when agreement on this resolution is under active negotiation - has grave, tangible, and entirely avoidable consequences for Palestinians in Gaza," a spokesperson for the US mission to the UN said in a statement.

"The ceasefire is fragile and we urge the Council to unite and move forward to secure the peace that is desperately needed," the spokesperson said, calling it an "historic moment to pave a path towards enduring peace in the Middle East".

Last week, US officials launched negotiations within the Council on a draft that would follow up on a ceasefire in the two-year war between Israel and Hamas and endorse Mr Trump's plan.

A third draft of the resolution seen "welcomes the establishment of the Board of Peace," a transitional governing body for Gaza - that Mr Trump would theoretically chair - with a mandate running until the end of 2027.

It would authorise member states to form a "temporary International Stabilisation Force (ISF)" that would work with Israel and Egypt and newly trained Palestinian police to help secure border areas and demilitarise Gaza.

The ISF also would work on the "permanent decommissioning of weapons from non-state armed groups," protecting civilians and securing humanitarian aid corridors.

Unlike previous drafts, the latest mentions a possible future Palestinian state.

Once the Palestinian Authority has carried out requested reforms and the rebuilding of Gaza is underway, "the conditions may finally be in place for a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood," the draft says.

"The United States will establish a dialogue between Israel and the Palestinians to agree on a political horizon for peaceful and prosperous coexistence," it adds.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said yesterday he was optimistic that the resolution would be adopted.

"I think we're making good progress on the language of the resolution and hopefully we'll have action on it very soon," he told reporters in Canada.

But while it seems that Council members support the creation of a Board of Peace in principle, diplomats said that questions have been raised about the draft.

Those issues include the lack of any mention in the text of a mechanism for oversight from the Security Council, a future role for the Palestinian Authority and details about the ISF's mandate.