Bipin Joshi and Tamir Nimrodi, the two hostages whose fate in Gaza remained unknown, were not included on the list published by Hamas of the 20 living hostages expected to be released during Monday’s exchange of hostages held by Hamas and prisoners held by Israel.
Neither Hamas nor Israel released statements saying the two were deceased.
In addition to some 1,200 Israelis killed on Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas kidnapped 251 men and women during the terror attack. The majority were later released in hostage exchanges in the two years since then.
Of the 48 hostages who were still in Gaza at the time of the new ceasefire deal, 26 were confirmed dead by Israeli officials. Twenty others were believed to be alive at the time, with two people’s fates unknown.
Bipin Joshi, a Nepalese agriculture student who was in Israel to study, was kidnapped from Kibbutz Alumim, according to The Times of Israel.
“We just want him back,” his sister said in August, according to the newspaper. “It’s too much for me and my family.”
Joshi was 22 years old when kidnapped, according to Nepal’s Kathmandu Post.
Joshi’s family released footage of Joshi on Wednesday they said was recovered by the Israel Defense Forces and shared with the family by Israeli intelligence officials. The footage was believed to have been filmed in November 2023.
It is unclear exactly when the IDF recovered the footage and shared it with the family. The family released a clip of the footage via the Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters on Wednesday.
“For many months, this footage was under strict censorship. Only recently were we granted permission to release it,” the Joshi family said in a statement with the video. “It is not easy for us to share it publicly, but we are in critical and historic days that will determine the fate of the 48 hostages, whether the living will return to their families and the deceased to a proper burial, or whether we will remain in pain without closure.”
Tamir Nimrodi was 18 years old when he was kidnapped barefoot and without his glasses, according to The Jerusalem Post.
Nimrodi, who had been serving with the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories, was taken from a base near the Erez Crossing into the Gaza Strip, according to the Times of Israel
“He always said I was his best friend. … I pray for the chance to have moments with him again,” said his mom, Herut Nimrodi. “The emptiness in my heart is indescribable.”
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