Israel Confirms Recovery of Hostage’s Body From Gaza

The return leaves just three deceased hostages unaccounted for in Gaza, advancing the first phase of the cease-fire agreement.

Red Cross vehicles transport the body of an Israeli captive as they drive through the Al-Nafaq area at night in Gaza City on Nov. 4, 2025. Saeed Jaras/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

Israel received the body of one of the few remaining hostages in Gaza, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said on Nov. 13.

Meny Godard, 73, was killed during the attack by the Hamas terrorist group in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, and his body was taken to Gaza.

His remains were handed over to the Israeli military and the Israel Security Agency via the Red Cross inside the Gaza Strip. The body was then transferred to Israel, where, following the identification process, the authorities informed Godard’s family of the return.

“The Government and the entire establishment for the missing and the captives of the State of Israel are determined, committed, and working tirelessly to return all of our fallen hostages for proper burial in their country,” Netanyahu’s office said in a Nov. 14 statement.

To date, Hamas has handed over the remains of 25 hostages. Three more need to be recovered and handed over.

“We will not compromise on this and will spare no effort until we return all of the fallen hostages, every last one of them,” Netanyahu’s office said.

Godard was taken from his home in Kibbutz Be’eri, southern Israel, and his death was confirmed on Dec. 8, 2023, the Israel Defense Forces said on Nov. 13. His wife, Ayelet Godard, was also killed during the attack.

Initial Phase

With three deceased hostages remaining in Gaza, the implementation of the first phase of the cease-fire agreement comes one step closer to completion.

Under the initial phase of the peace plan, Hamas is required to return all living and dead hostages to Israel, while Israel is to release the remains of 15 deceased Gazans for every released Israeli hostage.

The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry said on Nov. 10 that 315 bodies of Gazans have so far been handed over.

Trump’s plan says that once all Israeli hostages are released, Israel will “release 250 life sentence prisoners plus 1,700 Gazans who were detained after 7 October 2023, including all women and children detained in that context.”

Both the United States and Israel have been pushing for a swifter return of hostages.

Trump said on Oct. 25 that Hamas should return the bodies quickly or face action by the countries backing a peace deal.

“Some of the bodies are hard to reach, but others they can return now, and for some reason they are not,” Trump said at the time.

Hamas previously said that locating and recovering the bodies was being complicated by the mass destruction in Gaza. Israeli authorities maintain that Hamas knows where the bodies are and is stalling the return.

The cease-fire had also been tested as both sides accused each other of violations over both Israeli and Hamas military forces coming under attack.

Continued Efforts

Senior U.S. officials visited Israel in October to support the implementation of the cease-fire plan, including U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, U.S. Vice President JD Vance, special envoy Steve Witkoff, and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.

The disarmament of Hamas is part of the next stage of the agreement, including the elimination of the terrorist group’s military infrastructure and weaponry.

The United States and Arab and other international partners will join forces to form an International Stabilization Force (ISF) to immediately deploy in Gaza for security as it undergoes the transition from war to peaceful governance.

During his visit, Rubio held talks with Netanyahu and said that an international security force in Gaza under the next phase of the peace deal would have to be made up of countries that Israel is “comfortable with.”

As the ISF establishes control and stability in Gaza, the peace plan requires the IDF to progressively withdraw from the enclave. The agreement also prohibits interference in the entry of distribution and aid in the Strip.