IDF Recovers Body of Hostage From Rafah Tunnel in “Complex” Gaza Op, US Claims Deal "Very Close"

The Israeli military said on Jan. 8 that its troops recovered the body of a hostage from a tunnel in southern Gaza. The Israeli military said that the body was brought back to Israel following a "complex and difficult operation." The body of Bedouin Arab hostage Youssef al-Zayadna was found as mediators in Doha kept up a push for a ceasefire and hostage release deal.
Meanwhile, Israel’s far-right finance minister has warned of a new phase in the war on Gaza. Speaking to Israel’s Channel 7, Bezalel Smotrich said there will be a “very fundamental change” in the way Israel will “conduct the war in Gaza.” “We are preparing hell for Hamas,” the Israeli far-fight minister was quoted as having said. Smotrich also slammed the ongoing talks for a ceasefire, saying there “should have been no negotiations with Hamas.”

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