On Sunday, November 9, 2025, the remains of Israeli officer Hadar Goldin were finally returned to Israel, marking the end of an ordeal that began more than a decade ago during the 2014 war between Israel and Hamas. Goldin, who was just 23 years old at the time of his death, became a symbol of the enduring pain and complexity of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict—a conflict that, as of this week, has claimed at least 69,169 Palestinian lives since October 2023 alone, according to Gaza’s health authorities.
The return of Goldin’s remains was confirmed by both Hamas and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), as reported by News Arena Network and SAN. Hamas, in a statement circulated on social media, said it had located Goldin’s body in a tunnel in the southern city of Rafah and decided to return it as part of the ongoing ceasefire agreement. The IDF received the coffin via the Red Cross and transferred it to Israel’s National Institute of Forensic Medicine, where it was received with a military ceremony attended by the IDF Chief Rabbi, as noted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office.
Goldin’s story is one of tragedy and unresolved grief. He was killed on August 1, 2014, during Operation Protective Edge, just hours after a temporary ceasefire had been announced. His body was taken by Hamas and held in Gaza for more than a decade, making him the only hostage from before the current war to remain in captivity until now. In a televised address, Netanyahu stated, “Lieutenant Hadar Goldin fell in heroic combat during Operation Protective Edge. His body was abducted by Hamas, which refused to return him throughout this entire period.”
Goldin’s family, who have waited for years for news of their son, expressed cautious hope following the handover. “We are waiting for official confirmation that Hadar has returned to Israel,” the family said in a statement, according to SAN. “We don’t give up on anyone in this country, ever. We ask everyone to remain calm. Until it’s final, it’s not over.”
The return of Goldin’s remains was not an isolated event. Just a day earlier, the Israeli military received and identified the remains of another hostage, Lior Rudaeff, a 61-year-old Israeli-Argentinian and deputy security coordinator of Nir Yitzhak, a kibbutz attacked during the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led offensive. Rudaeff had died on May 7, 2024, but his body was only recovered on November 7, 2025. With these handovers, four deceased hostages—three Israelis and one Thai national—are still believed to be held by Hamas.
These exchanges come as the first phase of a U.S.-brokered ceasefire, which began on October 10, 2025, nears its end. Under the terms of this agreement, Hamas was required to return all hostages, both living and dead, to Israel. According to SAN, all 20 living hostages have now been returned, along with 24 of the 28 deceased. The future of the ceasefire, however, remains uncertain, as both sides weigh their next moves amid ongoing violence and political pressure.
The ceasefire has brought a measure of relief but has not ended the bloodshed. Gaza’s health authorities reported that at least 241 Palestinians have been killed and 614 injured by Israeli attacks since October 11, 2025, despite the truce. The overall death toll from Israeli attacks since October 2023 stands at 69,169, with more than 170,000 injured, according to China Media Group and the Gaza Health Ministry. The number continues to rise as officials and aid organizations recover bodies from the rubble of destroyed buildings.
On November 8, 2025, Israel handed over the remains of 15 Palestinians to Gaza through the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), a day after Palestinian militants returned the remains of an Israeli hostage. This exchange brings the total number of Palestinian bodies returned to 300, with 89 currently identified. Gaza hospitals also reported 10 deaths in the previous 72 hours, underscoring the persistent danger despite the ceasefire.
The human toll of the conflict is felt keenly on both sides. More than 4,000 Palestinian patients have left Gaza via the Rafah crossing for treatment in Egypt and other countries, while another 16,500 are still waiting for medical care abroad, according to the World Health Organization. Italian authorities confirmed that they have recently received dozens of patients from Gaza seeking urgent medical attention.
Meanwhile, the psychological scars of the war are evident in stories like that of Shady Abu Sedo, a Palestinian photojournalist who was arrested in March 2024 and detained without charge in an Israeli military prison. Abu Sedo described to AFP the harsh conditions he endured: “Imagine, 100 days from five in the morning until 11 at night, sitting on your knees, handcuffed, blindfolded, forbidden to speak or talk. You don’t know the time, you don’t know the days, you don’t know where you are.” He recounted being tortured and denied contact with his lawyer for months, only to be released as part of the ceasefire’s prisoner exchange, which saw 20 living captives returned by Hamas in exchange for about 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.
Tensions remain high in the West Bank as well. On November 8, dozens of Palestinians suffered from tear gas effects after Israeli forces fired gas canisters at worshippers at the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Mosque in Salem, a village east of Nablus, according to News Arena Network. The situation, while described as “tense but under control,” continues to be fraught with uncertainty and the threat of renewed violence.
Internationally, the perception of the conflict is shifting. Many countries that once offered staunch support to Israel have moved toward more neutral or even pro-Palestinian positions, especially in light of the mounting civilian casualties and allegations of human rights abuses in Gaza. The war, which began with Hamas’s surprise attack on October 7, 2023—killing roughly 1,500 Israelis and taking 251 hostages—has since devolved into a humanitarian catastrophe that shows little sign of resolution.
As the ceasefire’s initial phase concludes, both sides face difficult questions about the future. The return of Hadar Goldin’s remains offers a rare moment of closure for one family, but for thousands of others—Israeli and Palestinian alike—the wounds of war remain open, and the path to peace is as uncertain as ever.
