JERUSALEM: Israel has identified one of two dead hostages returned by Hamas on Saturday as 54-year-old Ronen Engel.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office confirmed Engel’s identification was completed on Sunday.
The military informed Engel’s family that their loved one had been returned to Israel.
Israel vowed to spare no effort “until all the fallen hostages are repatriated”.
Engel was a resident of Nir Oz kibbutz abducted from his home on October 7, 2023.
He was killed by Hamas during the attack and his body taken to Gaza.
The Israeli army had announced his death on December 1, 2023.
His wife Karina Engel-Bart and their teenagers Mika and Yuval were also abducted while hiding in their safe room.
Engel’s family were later freed during the first truce between Israel and Hamas.
He worked as a photojournalist and volunteer ambulance driver for Magen David Adom in the Negev region.
Under a US-brokered ceasefire agreement, Hamas has returned all 20 surviving hostages and 12 deceased ones.
Hamas was required to hand over all hostages, dead and alive, by Monday at 0900 GMT.
The militant group says it needs more time and technical assistance to recover remaining bodies from Gaza’s rubble.
Delays in finding bodies buried under rubble threaten the fragile ceasefire. – AFP
