The 73-year-old man was one of the victims of October 7, and the terrorists kept his body in their possession
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Israel experienced a moment of pain and partial relief with the recovery of the remains of Meny Godard, 73 years old, a resident of Kibbutz Be’eri and one of the victims of the October 7 attack.
The Prime Minister's Office confirmed that the remains delivered through the International Committee of the Red Cross belong to Godard, murdered by Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorists during the massacre. After the attack, his body was abducted and taken to Gaza.
Godard's tragedy is intertwined with that of his wife, Ayelet, who was also murdered that day. The Israeli army had confirmed Meny's death in December 2023, but his family—his children Gal, Bar, Mor, and Goni, and his seven grandchildren—had been waiting 269 days for this minimal closure, clinging to a painful hope that lasted for almost 300 days.
The handover process was carried out within the framework of the ongoing exchange agreement. Hamas had announced that at 8:00 p.m. it would deliver the remains of one of the deceased hostages; half an hour later, the Red Cross received them and transferred them to the Israeli authorities.
Red Cross trucks in Gaza
Before being sent to the National Institute of Forensic Medicine for final identification, the Israel Defense Forces held a brief military ceremony in the presence of the Army's Chief Rabbi.
The news was received with deep sadness by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which stated that "there are no words to describe this pain" and reiterated its urgent call: "The hostages don't have time. We must bring them all home, now."
Kibbutz Be’eri, which lost a devastating number of members in the attack, issued a statement embracing the Godard family and wishing that they may find comfort in burying Meny next to his wife in the community they loved so much.
The kibbutz authorities recalled that there are still three hostages in Gaza: Ran Gvili, Dror Or, and Sudthisak Rinthalak. They emphasized that Be’eri's true recovery will only begin when all of them return.
Sources consulted by KAN News also indicated that Hamas knows the whereabouts of the remains of all the deceased hostages, including those held by Islamic Jihad, and stressed that it is essential to maintain pressure to secure their return without further concessions.
The return of Godard's remains serves as a painful reminder of the magnitude of the October 7 attack and reinforces the consensus within Israel: the demand will not stop until every hostage, living or deceased, returns home.
