The bodies of Judy Weinstein-Hagai and her husband, Gad Hagai, an American-Israeli couple who were abducted by Hamas in the October 7 attack, have been recovered from Gaza by the Israeli army after a special military operation.

The Hagai couple had been kidnapped from fields near their home in Kibutz Nir Oz with their deaths confirmed in December 2023.

Gand Hagai was 72 years old, a father of four children and grandfather of seven grandchildren, a musician and an advocate of healthy and vegan food, the kibbutz administration said in a statement

Judy Hagai was 70, an English teacher for children with special needs and concentration problems.

In a message, the Hagai family expressed their grief and gratitude: “We are grateful for the closure of this case and for their return to their homeland, Israel, where they will be buried with dignity. We would like to thank the IDF and the security forces who carried out the complex rescue operation and who fought for us for over a year and a half, as well as all those who supported us, fought, prayed and fought for us and for the entire people of Israel. However, our hearts will not be whole until all 12 hostages from Nir Oz and the 56 hostages remaining in Gaza are returned home.”