Israeli household mourns ‘man of peace’ as physique returned from Gaza

From her home in east London, British-Israeli Sharone Lifschitz by no means gave up hope that her 84-year-old father Oded would return from the horror of Hamas captivity, after greater than 500 days.

He was a person of peace, a campaigner for, and a buddy of, Palestinians.

He was dragged from his dwelling by Palestinian gunmen on 7 October and killed in captivity after being taken to Gaza alive.

The return of his physique on Thursday was devastating information for Ms Lifschitz and her household, notably her mom Yocheved who was additionally a hostage however returned alive and now won’t be able to reunite along with her husband of 63 years.

After figuring out Oded’s physique, the pinnacle of Israel’s Nationwide Institute of Forensic Medication stated he had been killed in captivity greater than a 12 months in the past. The Israeli Prime Minister’s Workplace stated he “was murdered in captivity by the Islamic Jihad terrorist group.”

The BBC had been with Sharone, a filmmaker and tutorial, at her dwelling when the ceasefire was introduced final month.

She shed tears of pleasure and hope as finally she noticed a chance the place she would uncover what had occurred to her father. After greater than a 12 months of him being held hostage, she did not know if he was alive or lifeless.

Sharone Lifschitz admitted then that at his age the hopes for his survival had been slim, however she additionally believed “miracles can occur”.

Ms Lifschitz has been an eloquent and dignified voice for the discharge of her father and the opposite hostages, and make clear the trauma the hostage households have confronted since their ordeal started.

“A method or one other, we’ll know. We’ll know if he is nonetheless with us, if we will take care of him. We’ll know who we’re grieving for… My father did not deserve this.

However she recognised there have been “extra graves to return.”

And now, one will probably be for her father.

Oded Lifshitz was a journalist and veteran campaigner for peace who drove sick Palestinians to hospitals in Israel for therapy. In his marketing campaign for Palestinian rights he met Yasser Arafat, then head of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO).

He helped to discovered Kibbutz Nir Oz, the place he lived and was taken hostage from. It was a spot the place he was well-known for the cacti that he grew, the piano he performed and the grandchildren he adored.

In a tribute, UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer stated he was “deeply saddened” by Oded’s demise, and despatched his “heartfelt condolences” to his household.

“After I met Sharone in Downing Road, she confirmed exceptional power within the face of essentially the most tough circumstances,” Sir Keir stated.

“The information of her father’s demise is a tragedy. It’s my hope that the peace he labored to see within the area by way of his charity work and activism will probably be achieved.”

About 1,200 individuals – principally civilians – had been killed within the 7 October assaults and 251 others, together with Oded and Yocheved, taken again to Gaza as hostages. Israel launched an enormous navy marketing campaign in opposition to Hamas in response, which has killed no less than 48,297 Palestinians – primarily civilians – based on the Hamas-run well being ministry.

In addition to Oded, three different our bodies had been launched by Hamas on Thursday – who Hamas stated had been Shiri Bibas, 33, and her two younger sons, Ariel and Kfir.

However on Thursday evening, Israel’s navy accused Hamas of handing over the physique of an unidentified particular person as a substitute of that of Ms Bibas.

“In the course of the identification course of, it was decided that the extra physique acquired just isn’t that of Shiri Bibas, and no match was discovered for some other hostage,” the Israel Protection Forces stated.

Oded’s spouse Yocheved, who was freed as a hostage by Hamas in 2023, met then-Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar whereas held within the tunnels underneath Gaza – and instructed him he ought to be ashamed of himself.

The British legal professionals supporting the household stated “Yocheved have to be the one particular person to have met Sinwar, Netanyahu and the Pope, and given all of them a bit of her thoughts. That’s the type of extraordinary particular person she is.”

On Wednesday, as she acquired a peace award for her campaigning for the hostages, she stated: “Oded was an awesome fighter for peace. He had excellent relations with Palestinians and the factor that hurts essentially the most is that they betrayed him.”

His household stated they may now mourn for a husband, father, grandfather and nice grandfather, however after “503 agonising days of uncertainty”, that they had “hoped and prayed for a special end result”.