The remains of hostage Joshua Loitu Mollel, a student from Tanzania, were returned to Israel from Gaza on Wednesday night, the Prime Minister’s Office reported Thursday.
“Following the completion of the identification process by the National Center of Forensic Medicine, in cooperation with the Israel Police and the Military Rabbinate, representatives of the IDF and the Foreign Ministry informed the family of the fallen hostage, Joshua Loitu Mollel, a student from Tanzania who was abducted to the Gaza Strip on October 7, 2023, that their loved one has been returned to Israel, and his identification has been completed,” it said.
The Prime Minister’s Office said it shared in the sorrow of Mollel’s family, and that it is committed to returning all of the remaining deceased hostages in Gaza for proper burials.
“The Hamas terrorist organization is required to uphold its commitments to the mediators and to return them as part of the implementation of the agreement,” it said. “We will not compromise on this and will spare no effort until all the hostages are brought home – every last one of them.”
Mollel’s remains arrived at the L. Greenberg Institute of Forensic Medicine at Abu Kabir in Tel Aviv for identification, the Health Ministry reported Wednesday night.
The IDF and Shin Bet received the remains from the Red Cross and transferred them to the institute.
Hamas said it would return a slain Israeli hostage earlier in the evening in a social media post.
After Tuesday's return of Staff-Sergeant Itay Chen, there are seven remaining slain Israeli hostages in Hamas captivity in Gaza.
Six slain hostages remain in Hamas captivity in Gaza: Meny Godard, Hadar Goldin, Ran Gvili, Dror Or, Lior Rudaeff, and Sudthisak Rinthalak.
Hamas returns remains of Gaza hostages
Over the last week, Hamas has returned the remains of four Israeli hostages in Gaza.
On Sunday, Hamas returned the remains of Col. Asaf Hamami, 40, Capt. Omer Neutra, 21, and St.-Sgt. Oz Daniel, 19.
Chen and Neutra's return marked the last Israeli-American hostages held in Hamas possession, with Sudthisak Rinthalak being the last foreigner.
Goldin is the last hostage who remains in Hamas captivity, who was kidnapped while in active IDF service.
This is a developing story.