Twenty months after Hamas terrorists killed them and dragged their bodies into Gaza, three Israeli hostages came home Saturday in a heroic IDF military operation.
The recovered hostages were identified as Yonatan Samerano, 21; Ofra Keidar, 70; and Shay Levinson, 19. All three were killed during Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, with their bodies then taken into Gaza by Hamas.
Using what IDF officials described as “precise intelligence” obtained by the military’s Hostages Headquarters, the heroic operation was carried out by the Gaza Division in coordination with the Shin Bet security agency.
For the Samerano family, the recovery carried particular emotional weight. Yonatan’s father, Kobi, announced on social media that his son’s remains were returned on what would have been his 23rd birthday.
“Yesterday was Yonati’s Hebrew birthday. On his 23rd birthday, on the very day he was born, our Yonati was rescued in a heroic operation by the brave soldiers of the IDF and the Shin Bet,” Kobi Samerano wrote on Instagram.
The young DJ had been attending the Nova music festival when Hamas launched its attack. When the shooting started, Samerano fled toward nearby Kibbutz Be’eri with two friends, where all three were murdered and their bodies abducted. Later investigations revealed that Samerano’s body was taken into Gaza by a Hamas terrorist who worked as a social worker for UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees.
Ofra Keidar was killed and abducted from her home in Kibbutz Be’eri, where she had lived with her husband Shmuel, who was also murdered on October 7. The couple left behind three children and grandchildren. Keidar had taught English to children with special needs at the kibbutz and also taught meditation techniques to young people suffering from anxiety due to rocket fire from Gaza.
Staff Sergeant Shay Levinson was a tank commander stationed at the Gaza border on the morning of the attack. He was killed while battling the invading Hamas terrorists near the Nova festival site, and his body was subsequently taken to Gaza.
The three bodies were transported to Israel’s Abu Kabir forensic institute for identification before families were notified of the recovery. According to current Israeli government figures, 50 hostages remain in Gaza, including the bodies of at least 28 confirmed dead.
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