Israel announced on Sunday that it had recovered the body of Oron Shaul, an Israeli soldier who it said had been held in Gaza since 2014.
“In a covert special operation conducted by IDF (Israel Defense Forces) and ISA (Shin Bet) special forces in Gaza, the body of the fallen IDF soldier SSGT Oron Shaul was recovered,” the army said in a statement on X.
The IDF said he “fell in battle” in Shejaiya on 20 July 2014 during “Operation Protective Edge”, also known as the 2014 Gaza War.
“His body was kidnapped by the Hamas terrorist organization,” it said.
Cleared for publication: In a covert special operation conducted by IDF and ISA special forces in Gaza, the body of fallen IDF soldier SSGT Oron Shaul was recovered.
Oron was killed in combat in Shejaiya on 20 July 2014 during Operation Protective Edge. His body was kidnapped… pic.twitter.com/71ho74LJNV– Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) 19 January 2025
“Efforts to bring him back, including intelligence gathering, continued for more than a decade and throughout the war,” it said.
operation protective edge
Israel began an air campaign against Hamas in the Gaza Strip on July 7, 2014.
Israel said the operation, called “Operation Protective Edge”, was launched in “response to increased rocket and mortar fire” on the Israeli city from the Gaza Strip in June and early July 2014, and to de-escalate tensions. Despite Israel’s “continued efforts” to
The conflict ended with an unconditional ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on 26 August.
New Gaza ceasefire begins after brief delay
Israel began a ceasefire with Hamas in Gaza on Sunday, about three hours later than scheduled.
There was a delay in implementing the ceasefire when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked – an hour before the 0630 GMT deadline – that Hamas provide the names of three hostages it was to release on Sunday as part of the deal.
Hamas said it was committed to a ceasefire but was unable to provide a list of hostages due to “technical territorial reasons”. Names were then shared and a ceasefire finally began at 0915 GMT.
The initial exchange was the release of three Israeli hostages in exchange for the first group of Palestinian prisoners.
Israel-Hamas Gaza ceasefire
A total of 33 hostages taken by Hamas during attacks on Israeli cities on October 7, 2023, will be returned from Gaza during the initial 42-day ceasefire.
Under the agreement, hundreds of Palestinian prisoners will also be released from Israeli jails.
The Hamas attack killed 1,210 people, mostly civilians. Of the 251 taken hostage, 94 are still in Gaza, 34 of whom have been killed according to the Israeli military.
Negotiations on the second phase of the agreement will begin on the 16th day after the first phase and are likely to include the release of all remaining hostages.
The third phase is expected to include the return of all remaining bodies and the beginning of the reconstruction of Gaza.