Israel says they have found the bodies of six hostages from Gaza who were held by Hamas

Israel says its soldiers have found six bodies abducted by Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

In a statement, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the bodies were found on Saturday in an underground tunnel in the Rafah area.

The IDF named the hostages as Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi and Master Sgt Ori Danino.

Rear spokesman Adm Daniel Hagari said the initial investigation was that “they were brutally killed by Hamas terrorists just before we got to them”.

After the death of Mr Goldberg-Polin – who is an American citizen – was confirmed, US President Joe Biden said he was “devastated and angry” about the news.

In a statement on Sunday morning, the IDF said the bodies were “returned to Israeli territory”.

“They were all captured on October 7 [2023] and they were killed by the terrorist organization Hamas in the Gaza Strip.”

The statement added that their families have already been informed.

Meanwhile, President Biden said in a statement that “Hersh was among the innocent people who were brutally attacked while attending a peace ceremony in Israel on October 7”.

“He lost his arm helping friends and strangers during the brutal killing by Hamas. He had just turned 23. He was planning to travel the world.

“I know his parents, Jon and Rachel. They were brave, smart, and strong, as they endured the unthinkable,” Mr. Biden said.

The Israeli military launched an operation in Gaza to destroy Hamas in response to an unprecedented attack in southern Israel on October 7, in which around 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were captured.

More than 40,530 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the Hamas-run health ministry in the area.

American, Egyptian and Qatari negotiators are trying to broker a ceasefire that would see Hamas release 97 hostages still in custody, including at least 27 presumed dead, in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons.