Hamas on Monday night handed over to Israel the body of hostage Tal Haimi. Haimi, 41, who was the chief of Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak’s civil defense squad, was killed while defending his community on October 7, 2023, and his body was abducted to the Gaza Strip.

He and other members of the rapid response team battled the invading terrorists at the entrance to the kibbutz until he was shot dead. In December 2023, Tal’s family was informed based on intelligence that he had been killed on October 7 and his body taken hostage. His family held a funeral, but awaited his body.

Several hours after a casket with Haimi’s remains arrived at the Abu Kabir forensic institute in Tel Aviv for identification on Monday, military representatives notified his family that his body had been returned to Israel by Hamas.

Like many other civil defense squad members who were killed while fighting Hamas on October 7, Haimi was posthumously promoted to the rank of sergeant major in the reserves, the Israel Defense Forces announced Tuesday morning.

The Prime Minister’s Office in a statement said that Israel “shares in the profound grief of the Haimi family and of all the families of the fallen hostages.”

The PMO warned that that Hamas “is required to fulfill its commitments to the mediators and to return [the remaining bodies] as part of the agreement’s implementation.” Fifteen bodies of hostages remain in Gaza.

“We will not compromise on this and will spare no effort until we bring back all of the fallen hostages,” vowed the PMO, “every single one of them.”

Tal was survived by his wife, Ela, and their four children, Nir, Einav, Udi, and Lotan. Lotan was born in May 2024, seven months after Tal was killed.

“It’s a very big relief, though as we approach the funeral it’s very painful as well,” Ela told Channel 12 on Tuesday.

“I’m glad I was able to tell my children this morning that their dad returned,” she added, expressing hope that the families of the 15 hostages whose bodies remain in Gaza will get to do the same.

Zamir Haimi,........

© The Times of Israel