The Israeli army confirmed yesterday that it had recovered the bodies of three hostages, who were being held in Gaza. One is that of the young German-Israeli Shani Louk, 23 years old, whose death was confirmed at the end of October. The other two are Amit Buskila, 28, and Itzhak Gelerenter, 57. All three were captured at the electronic music festival, on the border with Gaza, during the Hamas terrorist raid on October 7. Israel claims that all three were killed that same day, but their bodies remained abducted. According to the army, the bodies were recovered on Thursday night in Rafah during a military operation based on information obtained during interrogations.
“We will bring back all the hostages, both the living and the dead,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.
The images of Shani Louk in a pickup truck driven by Hamas militiamen on October 7 went around the world. On October 30, the Government of Israel confirmed her death, after part of the young woman’s body was found.
On the other hand, the military floating dock built in Gaza by the United States Navy is already operational and has begun to receive the first shipments of humanitarian aid. The Pentagon announced the start of operations of this infrastructure on Thursday, in charge of Vice Admiral Brad Cooper of the United States, who reported that “five hundred or six hundred tons” of aid would arrive between today and tomorrow. “The sea route is an additional effort that is not intended to replace the land routes to Gaza,” clarified Cooper, who explained that the port has been built in coordination with the Israeli authorities, whose army was made charge of earthworks on the beach.
The facility, which already stabilizes the maritime corridor between Cyprus and the strip, includes an inland platform to allow larger ships to disembark aid so that smaller vessels can transport it ashore.
In the first hours, the US delivered nutritional food bars for 11,000 people and therapeutic food for 7,200 severely malnourished children through the pier, as well as hygiene kits for 30,000 people.
For its part, the EU sent the first shipment of aid yesterday through the provisional port, consisting of 88,000 cans of food sent by Romania through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.
The United Kingdom also reported yesterday that it had sent through the new dock a first aid package with 8,400 temporary plastic shelters, which will be followed by an additional 2,000 units and 900 tents, five forklifts and 9,200 hygiene kits. The UK has also deployed a military vessel to the area.
