The Israeli family mourns the “peace man” when the body returns from the gas

From his house in East London, British-Israel Sharon Lifshitz has never abandoned the hope that her 84-year-old father Oded will return from the horror of Hamas’s captivity after more than 500 days.

He was a man of peace, a campaign for and a friend of Palestinians.

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

The return of his body on Thursday was devastating news for d -ja lifschitz and her family, in particular her mother Yocheved who was also a hostage but returned alive And now he won’t be able to reunite with her husband at 63.

After identifying Oded’s body, the head of Israel’s Forensic Forensics Institute said he had been killed in captivity more than a year ago. The service of the Israeli Prime Minister said he “was killed in captivity by the Islamic terrorist organization of Jihad.”

The BBC was with Sharon, a director and an academic, at her home when the fire was announced last month.

She shed tears of joy and hope, as she first saw an opportunity, where she would find out what had happened to her father. After more than a year, he was held hostage from him, she did not know if he was alive or dead.

Sharone Lifschitz then admitted that at his age, the hopes of survival were thin, but she also believes that “miracles can happen.”

Lifschitz is an eloquent and worthy voice for the release of his father and other hostages and sheds light on the trauma that hostages have been confronted with from the beginning of their ordeal.

“We will know in one way or another. We will know if he is still with us if we can take care of him. We will know who we are grieving for … My father did not deserve it.

But she recognized that there were “more graves,” they are coming.

And now one will be for his father.

Oded Lifshitz was a journalist and a veteran peace campaign that brought sick Palestinians to hospitals in Israel for treatment. In his Palestinian Rights campaign, he met with Yasser Arafat, then the head of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

He helped to open Kibbutz Nir Oz, where he lived and was taken hostage. It was a place where he was well known for the cacti he grew, the piano he played, and the grandchildren he adored.

As a tribute, the United Kingdom Prime Minister Sir Kiir Starmer said he was “deeply saddened” by Ode’s death and sent his “hearty condolences” to his family.

“When I met with Sharon in Downing Street, she showed a remarkable power to the most difficult circumstances,” Sir Keyer said.

“The news of her father’s death is a tragedy. I hope the peace he worked to see in the region through his charity and activism will be achieved.”

About 1,200 people – mostly civilians – were killed in the attacks on October 7 and 251 others, including Oded and Jocheved, returned to Gaza as hostages. Israel has launched a large -scale military campaign against Hamas in response, which died at least 48 297 Palestinians – mainly civilians – according to Hamas Health Ministry.

In addition to Oded, three more bodies were released from Hamas on Thursday – whom Hamas said they were Bibs, at 33, and her two young sons, Ariel and Cfir.

But on Thursday night, Israeli military Accused of Hamas of betraying the body to an unidentified person Instead of MS Bibas.

“During the identification process, it was found that the additional body received was not that of Bibs Shiri and no coincidence was found for another hostage,” Israel’s defense forces said.

Oded Yochev’s wife, who was released as a hostage by Hamas in 2023, met with the then Hamas Leader Yahaya Sinuar as he held in the tunnels under Gaza – and told him that he should be ashamed of himself.

British lawyers supporting the family said that “Yochev should be the only person who met Sinuar, Netanyahu and the Pope, and gave them all a piece of his mind. This is the species of the extraordinary person who is. ”

On Wednesday, as she received a peace award for her hostage campaign, she said: “Oded was a great fighter for peace. He had a very good relationship with Palestinians and what hurt the most was that they betrayed him . ”

His family told him that they can now grieve for a husband, father, grandfather and great -grandfather, but after “503 agonizing days of uncertainty,” they hoped and prayed for a different result. “