A man who was killed during the Hamas-led October 7 attacks has been found on Israeli territory, according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), after he was previously assumed to have been among the hostages taken to the Gaza Strip.
Since the body was only found on Friday, months after the unprecedented massacre committed by Hamas and other Palestinian militants from Gaza, the man had been believed to have been abducted to the coastal area.
The army said it had informed the victim's relatives after the remains have been identified through extensive forensic examinations.
According to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, set up by relatives of the 250 people taken to Gaza on October 7, the man had been working as a security guard for the Nova music festival, which had taken place close to the border with the Gaza Strip.
In this capacity, he had saved numerous festival guests from the fighters before he himself was murdered, it said.
Militants killed some 1,200 people in southern Israel on October 7 and abducted another 250 to Gaza.
Israel responded with massive airstrikes and a ground operation, in which more than 34,500 Palestinians have been killed so far.
As part of a temporary truce agreement, Hamas released 105 hostages during a week-long ceasefire at the end of November. In return, Israel released 240 Palestinian prisoners from its jails.
Several weeks ago, Israel had assumed that just under 100 of the 130 remaining hostages were still alive. However, it is now feared that significantly more of them may already be dead.