IDF recovers the bodies of three more hostages in Gaza

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) troops announced Friday that they recovered the bodies of three more hostages in the Gaza Strip. They are two military personnel who were working near the Gaza border during the October 7 attacks. Along with them, a French-Israeli civilian who was partying at the Nova festival in southern Israel.

The two soldiers are Corporal, Nik Beizer, and Sergeant, Ron Sherman, both 19 years old. Beizer was at the Erez Pass checkpoint. He had been in the IDF for less than a year and was in charge of handling transit permits for Gazans to move between the Strip and Israel. According to the Times of Israel, Beizer was not supposed to be on base that weekend, but had switched with a friend who wanted the weekend off.

Sgt. Ron Sherman was also at his military base in southern Israel when the Oct. 7 attacks occurred. During part of the assault by Hamas terrorists he was in communication with family members via telephone. According to statements by his family to Israeli media, he was captured alive. A Hamas video shows him in good condition and handcuffed in the back of a pickup truck.

A French-Israeli civilian

These two servicemen are joined by Elia Toledano, a French national, who was at the Nova music festival when Hamas attacked the venue. His body has been returned to Israel by the IDF, but no details clarifying the time and manner of his death have been specified. According to Israeli media, some witnesses saw Toledano alive on the morning of October 7, in the company of Mia Schem.

French Foreign Minister, Catherine Colonna, declared that France was "deeply saddened to hear the Israeli armed forces announce the death of our compatriot Elia Toledano, a Hamas hostage whose body was found in Gaza."

A cargo ship is set on fire in the Red Sea after another attack

Defense Department sources told AFP on Friday that a cargo ship was set on fire in the Red Sea after being hit by Houthi rockets. The affected vessel is flagged to Sierra Leone and and initial reports say that no one was killed in the attack.

"We have evidence that something launched from a Houthi-controlled region of Yemen hit this vessel, which was damaged, and a fire was reported," the military source told AFP. It is not the first such attack. Since the beginning of the conflict in Gaza, the Houthis, backed by Iran, have been firing rockets and drones across the Red Sea at Israel or at targets in the region's waters.

Jake Sullivan's visit to Israel

National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, traveled to Israel to meet with the government. After several meetings, he held a press conference in which he addressed several points of the Israeli current affairs regarding the war with Hamas.

Among other things, Sullivan spoke of the road map that the Israeli government shared with the United States about its plans in Gaza and how it plans to stagger different future phases of the conflict. In this regard, Sullivan estimated that it would not be "right" for Israel to occupy the Gaza Strip in the long term when the war against Hamas ends. "We don't think it makes sense or we don't think it would be right for Israel to occupy Gaza in the long term," Sullivan said at his press conference.

Sullivan's comments about the Israeli roadmap coincide with earlier reports on the roadmap, which indicated that the IDF could end the war as early as January 2024, and would then move to occupy defensive positions inside and outside the Gaza Strip.