Israel Receives Body of Soldier Killed in Gaza During 2014 Conflict

Mon Nov 10 2025 19:20:04 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

The body of Israeli soldier Lt. Hadar Goldin, killed in 2014, has finally been returned from Gaza amidst ongoing hostilities.

The body of Lt. Hadar Goldin, an Israeli soldier killed during a Hamas ambush in 2014, has been returned to Israel after years of negotiations and conflict. This return comes as part of a ceasefire deal where Hamas has also released hostages. Goldin's family, including his father, expressed hope in finally bringing him home as the Israeli leadership vowed to persist in efforts to recover all hostages.

Israel has received the body of Lt Hadar Goldin, a soldier killed in an ambush by Hamas in 2014 and whose body has been held in Gaza since then.

The Israeli military said Lt Goldin, who was 23 when he died, was formally identified and will now be buried. He left behind parents, a sister, two brothers, and a fiancée.

Hamas's armed wing had said on Sunday that it would hand over Lt Goldin's body as part of a ceasefire deal.

Hamas has now returned all 20 living hostages, and 24 out of 28 deceased hostages under the first phase of the deal.

On Sunday, Lt Goldin's father Simcha Goldin said in a statement: Victory means bringing home the hostages and bringing home our soldiers to Israel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog both said they had kept a picture of Lt Goldin in their offices for the past 11 years. Netanyahu said we didn't give up on bringing him home.

I know the agony that his family's been through, I know the longing for his return that united the people of Israel, and today we're united in bringing him finally to his parents, to his family, to a grave in Israel, he added.

Efforts to retrieve Lt Goldin involved extensive intelligence efforts, alongside operational activities over the past decade and during the last two years of war between Israel and Hamas, according to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF).

The military expressed its deep condolences to Goldin's family and continues to work on returning all deceased hostages.

Lt Goldin, from Kfar Saba, is the only deceased hostage whose remains were being held in Gaza before the recent war ignited by Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.

He was killed in combat on August 1, 2014, during a ceasefire period in a previous conflict. His body was taken by Hamas fighters after he was killed in a firefight.

Approximately 69,176 people have reportedly died due to Israeli attacks in Gaza following the October conflict, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

The situation remains tense, with ongoing clashes despite a ceasefire agreement, as both sides have accused one another of not adhering to the terms.