Netanyahu orders emergency meeting amid renewed tensions over hostage remains

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called an emergency meeting in response to repeated violations by Hamas during the process of returning the bodies of hostages killed by the group.

According to Israeli media, overnight Tuesday, October 28, militants handed over through the Red Cross another fragment of the remains of hostage Ofir Tzarfati, whose body had already been returned to Israel earlier. Following the previous identification procedure, his remains were buried, and now the victim’s family must once again endure unbearable suffering.

Israeli authorities are considering several possible responses to this new violation, including expanding the “yellow line” — the zone currently controlled by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF). They are also weighing the possibility of reducing or completely halting the delivery of humanitarian aid.

The family of Ofir Tzarfati, who was killed in captivity by Hamas, confirmed that fragments of his remains were returned to Israel overnight Tuesday. Ofir had gone to the Nova music festival near Re’im to celebrate his birthday with his girlfriend Shuval and close friends.

On October 7, 2023, Ofir was kidnapped by militants in the Gaza Strip, where he was murdered. His remains were returned at the end of November 2023 following a joint operation by the IDF and Shin Bet and were buried in Israel.

In March 2024, additional fragments of Ofir’s remains were returned for burial in Israel. In August of the same year, Hamas published a photograph of Ofir’s body.

“We went to sleep last night with expectation and hope that another family would finally be able to close the agonising circle of the past two years and bring their loved one home for burial,” the family said in a statement issued through the Hostages and Missing Families Forum. “But once again, our family was deceived — forced to relive this ordeal as we try with all our strength to heal.”

“This morning we were shown a video of militants exhuming the remains of our beloved son, reburying them, and calling the Red Cross,” the statement continued. “It is a vile manipulation meant to derail the hostage deal and prevent the return of all captives.”

“This is now the third time we will have to reopen Ofir’s grave and bury our son again,” the parents emphasised. “The so-called ‘closure’ supposedly came in December 2023, but in reality, it never ends. We live with a wound that reopens again and again — between memory and longing, between loss and duty.

“Our Ofir went to the Nova festival to celebrate his birthday and never returned. We ask the entire people of Israel: do not forget the fallen, do not forget the hostages, and continue to support the families — until everyone is brought home, and even after. Only then will we have a future; only then will we be able to continue living in our country.”