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Israel’s military announced on Monday that it had retrieved the remains of the last Israeli hostage from the Gaza Strip, ending a two-year national ordeal and paving the way for a fragile US-brokered ceasefire with Hamas.
The remains of Ran Gvili were found at a cemetery on the outskirts of Gaza City after an intensive Israeli military operation over the weekend. The remains were identified using dental records, an Israeli military official said.
Gvili, a police officer, was killed fighting Hamas militants during the October 7 2023 cross-border invasion of southern Israel, and his body was taken back to Gaza.
He “went in first, and came back last”, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told local media.
More than 250 Israelis and foreign nationals were taken hostage by Hamas and other militant factions during the attack, which triggered two years of devastating war in Gaza. The last several dozen hostages, both living and deceased, were returned after a US-brokered ceasefire came into effect in October last year.
The fragile truce has mostly held, despite near-daily clashes between Israel and Hamas, and mutual complaints of violations.
The Trump administration last week announced the start of the so-called phase two of the deal and a new governing structure for the shattered enclave. It is aiming to begin a costly, years-long reconstruction of the strip as well as the disarmament of Hamas and an Israeli military withdrawal.
Gaza’s new governing scheme is being led by the Trump-chaired “Board of Peace”, the executive board of which includes the president’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, US envoy Steve Witkoff and former British premier Sir Tony Blair. A 14-member Palestinian technocratic committee will be responsible for day-to-day governance.
Gvili’s repatriation now clears a path for Israel to reopen the Rafah border crossing that connects Gaza with Egypt. The border was scheduled to be reopened during the first stage of the ceasefire, but Netanyahu’s far-right government had delayed doing so until all the hostages were returned.
Israel still holds half of the strip, including the entire Gaza-Egypt frontier, and the Rafah crossing, which has mostly remained closed since Israeli forces seized it in May 2024.
Rafah is set to be reopened for pedestrian traffic in both directions this week, with EU monitors and Palestinian security personnel deployed to the crossing, according to several Middle Eastern officials. However, the Israeli military will continue to independently vet and monitor people crossing the border, the officials said.
A US delegation led by Kushner and Witkoff met Netanyahu in Jerusalem over the weekend to discuss next steps in Gaza.
The “discussion was constructive and positive, with both sides aligned on next steps and the importance of continued cooperation”, Witkoff wrote on X.
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