JERUSALEM/GAZA — Israeli forces have received from the Red Cross in Gaza the remains believed to be those of Israeli soldier Hadar Goldin, whose body was held by Hamas for the past 11 years, the Israeli prime minister’s office said Sunday, Nov. 9, 2025.
The office said the remains were being transferred to Israel’s national forensic institute in Tel Aviv for identification.
Earlier, Hamas said it was handing over Goldin’s body. Goldin, an army officer, was killed during Israel’s 2014 war in Gaza. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later said the remains were believed to be Goldin’s.
At the start of his weekly cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said that over the 11 years Hamas kept Goldin’s body, “successive Israeli governments made great efforts to bring him back, amid the deep anguish of his family, who will now finally be able to lay him to rest in Israel.”
According to al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ armed wing, Goldin’s body was found Saturday in a tunnel in the Yebna refugee camp in Rafah, southern Gaza. This is the first reported recovery operation in Rafah since a ceasefire took effect Oct. 10. The city remains largely under Israeli control, and residents have not been allowed to return.
In a separate statement, the Brigades said Israel was “fully responsible for the clashes with our fighters in Rafah, who are defending themselves within an area under Israeli control.” The group urged mediators to ensure the continuation of the ceasefire, saying the recovery of other bodies would require additional personnel and technical equipment.
Before Sunday’s handover, Hamas had returned the remains of 23 hostages to Israel. If the latest remains are confirmed to be Goldin’s, four bodies would still be in Gaza — three Israelis and one Thai national abducted during the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023.
Gaza health authorities said Israel has released about 300 Palestinian bodies, most still unidentified. Despite the ceasefire, Israel has continued strikes and demolitions in Gaza, killing hundreds. The ministry placed the overall death toll from Israeli strikes since October 2023 at 69,169. / XINHUA