Omer Neutra, a dual American-Israeli citizen who fought in the Israeli military and was thought to have been taken hostage by Hamas and held in the Gaza Strip, was in fact killed on the day of the Hamas-led attack, the military said on Monday.
The Israeli military said Mr. Neutra, 21, had been taken hostage on Oct. 7, 2023, and died that same day. They said Hamas was holding his body, and described him as “a fallen soldier held hostage by a terrorist organization.”
The military did not explain why it was announcing Mr. Neutra’s death now. In the past it has cited new intelligence or forensic evidence when updating the status of those believed to be held in Gaza.
Mr. Neutra grew up near New York City and was doing military service when Hamas invaded southern Israel, killing over 1,100 people and capturing 250 hostages.
Mr. Neutra’s parents, Orna and Ronen, have been high-profile public campaigners for the release of their son and the roughly 100 other hostages still held in the Gaza Strip, about half of whom are believed to remain alive.
“We are private and not very political, and yet we find ourselves caught up in the middle of the most controversial geopolitical war in decades,” Orna Neutra, his mother, wrote in an opinion essay for The New York Post in August. “Our life as we knew it, is gone.”
Since their son’s capture, Mr. Neutra’s parents have addressed the Republican National Convention, met at the White House with President Biden and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, and visited the Pentagon and the House of Representatives.
They have also criticized Mr. Netanyahu, writing in The Post that they “questioned his sincerity and sense of urgency” in pursuing the release of the hostages. On Monday, the prime minister praised their son as “a hero of the Israeli army.”
“Omer was a man of values, blessed with talents and a Zionist in every aspect of his being,” Mr. Netanyahu said in a statement. “He immigrated to Israel to enlist in the I.D.F., chose a combat path and was chosen to command and lead.”
On Thanksgiving, the Neutra family renewed calls for their son’s release, and drew attention to the plight of those whose loved ones were still held in Gaza.
“For us, it’s no holiday,” Ronen Neutra said in an interview on CNN last week. “Our holiday table is empty a second year in a row. Omer is not there. We are hoping this is the last year that we are in this situation.”
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