Israel recovers remains of final Israeli hostage from Gaza. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it retrieved the body of Master Sgt Ran Gvili. The IDF said that with his recovery, all Israeli hostages taken into Gaza - living and dead - have now been returned.
Israeli forces carried out a targeted search of a cemetery in northern Gaza near the Yellow Line, deploying specialised units including rabbis, search teams and dental experts with mobile X-ray machines. Identification of the remains was confirmed by the National Institute of Forensic Medicine in cooperation with the Israeli police and the military rabbinate, the IDF said.
Hamas's armed wing said it had provided mediators with 'all the details and information in our possession regarding the location' of Ran Gvili's remains and that the discovery 'confirms Hamas's commitment to all the requirements of the ceasefire agreement'. Israeli officials have repeatedly accused Hamas of dragging its feet in the recovery of the final hostage. A senior US official said Hamas 'was very cooperative' and that detailed negotiations on demilitarisation will start this week, with disarmament possibly linked to amnesty and reconstruction.
Benjamin Netanyahu's office said Israel had agreed to a limited reopening of the Rafah crossing for pedestrian passage only, subject to a full Israeli inspection mechanism, once the operation to find and return Ran Gvili was complete. The Rafah crossing has been mostly closed since May 2024, when the Palestinian side was seized by Israeli forces. Palestinians in Gaza called on mediators and the US to pressure Israel to open Rafah fully and to allow more aid; one resident said, 'We hope this will close off Israel's pretexts and open the crossing.'
First and foremost, Ran must be brought home.
Gvili's family had opposed any reopening of Rafah until his return and repeated their demand that, 'First and foremost, Ran must be brought home.'
President Donald Trump said Hamas helped locate the last hostage's remains and urged the group to be disarmed, stating 'Now we have to disarm Hamas like they promised.' Axios analysts expressed deep scepticism that Hamas will peacefully disarm or that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will show restraint. Protesters and some returned hostages accused Mr Netanyahu of sabotaging ceasefire deals to protect his political career, a charge that has driven public demonstrations. Al Jazeera's Hind Khoudary wrote that Palestinians in Gaza remain frustrated and distrustful over promised ceasefire measures despite the recovery.
Under phase one of the US-brokered ceasefire, Hamas and Israel agreed to a ceasefire, an exchange of all living and dead Israeli hostages in Gaza for Palestinians detained in Israeli jails, a partial Israeli withdrawal, and a surge in humanitarian aid. Hamas had been due to return all hostages within 72 hours of the ceasefire taking effect but the process took far longer; ultimately 20 living Israeli hostages and the bodies of 27 dead Israeli and foreign captives were handed over, leaving only Ran Gvili missing until his body was recovered. Under terms referenced by US and other sources, the Trump administration had said Israel would hand over the remains of 15 Palestinians for each body returned from Gaza. The 7 October 2023 attack that triggered Israel's military response killed about 1,200 people and saw roughly 251 taken into Gaza as hostages. Many analysts say the recovery clears the final major obstacle to proceeding with phase two of the ceasefire plan. A limited pedestrian opening at Rafah, critics say, will not ease shortages of food, medicine and shelter across Gaza.
Officials said the retrieval may bring closure to Gvili's family and it finally ends Israel's hostage agony after 843 days.
Israeli authorities confirmed the recovery and forensic identification of Master Sgt Ran Gvili's remains and the IDF says this completes the return of every Israeli hostage taken into Gaza; the National Institute of Forensic Medicine, the Israeli police and the military rabbinate were involved in identification. Hamas, for its part, says it provided mediators with the information needed to locate the body, while Israeli officials have accused Hamas of dragging its feet; a senior US official described Hamas as cooperative, leaving competing accounts unresolved. Benjamin Netanyahu's office has tied a limited pedestrian reopening of Rafah to Israeli inspections, Gazans and aid groups are pushing for a full opening, and US-linked negotiators say detailed talks on demilitarisation are expected to be the next formal step.
Swipe to see how overseas media are framing the story and what domestic news is not reporting.Scroll to see how overseas media are framing the story and what domestic news is not reporting.
Now we can really stop the clock.
Times of Israel reported a Tel Aviv ceremony that halted the Hostages Square countdown after the final body was returned; at shutoff the clock was reported to show 843 days, 12 hours, 5 minutes and 59 seconds. The outlet said some family members and returned hostages used the event to criticise the government and press for political change.
The Qataris and the Turks were very helpful in getting Hamas to cooperate.
Al Masry Al Youm relayed US officials' public credit for mediators in Egypt, Qatar and Turkey in helping locate the remains; the same reporting repeated an Israeli account given to CNN that the Rafah crossing would be operated by European Union officials and Palestinian forces with oversight from Israel's Shin Bet.
Le Monde and France 24 foregrounded Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's post-recovery rhetoric: he vowed he would not allow the creation of a Palestinian state in Gaza ('I hear that I would allow the creation of a Palestinian state in Gaza. That did not happen and it will not happen'), warned that any Iranian attack would be met 'with a force that Iran has never yet seen', and said holding elections now 'would be a mistake'.
The full implementation of the ceasefire arrangements in Gaza is absolutely critical.
The New Arab (UK) emphasised follow‑up diplomacy and humanitarian steps: Gaza's Al‑Aqsa Martyrs Hospital reported receiving nine living Palestinian detainees released by Israel via Red Cross teams, and Turkey's foreign minister met Hamas officials in Ankara to discuss the ceasefire's second phase and humanitarian conditions.
SBS and 7News cited ACLED data that found Hamas was not responsible for the majority of aid looting between October 2023 and September 2025, attributing most looting to civilians, gangs and family clans. They also reported Gaza government claims that Israeli forces expanded control in eastern Khan Younis five times since the ceasefire, displacing at least 9,000 people, and showed footage aired on Israeli channels of soldiers arm in arm and a casket draped in an Israeli flag.
Folha Brazil gave a territorial figure, saying 'The Israeli army remains in control of 53% of Gaza', and its commentary argued the return of Gvili's remains removes one of Netanyahu's main public arguments for continuing the offensive while increasing pressure on Hamas to consider disarmament.
Hamas did not provide the coordinates of the burial; the information was obtained as a result of independent searches.
Nasha Niva reported that, citing the Israel Defense Forces, the remains were found in a mass grave on the eastern side of Gaza City and emphasised that the burial coordinates were not provided by Hamas, saying the location was established through independent searches.
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