Who Were The Three Special Hostage Soldiers Finally Returned?

Nadene Goldfoot

These beautiful soldiers, giving up their lives defending the only Jewish country in the world, the only one for the past some 2,000 years!  I'm crying seeing their faces, vibrant handsome people.  They're not just a heap of bones that people wonder why we are so adamant in wanting to give them a proper burial.  They are our family! They gave up their life for us!  They believed in Israel!   

                                                                       

Col Asaf Hamami (Hebrew: אסף חממי; December 2, 1982 – October 7, 2023) was an IDF officer who died in Gaza at the age of 40.

Three hostages were returned to Israel.  The remains of Col. Asaf Hamami, 40, Capt. Omer Neutra, 21, and Sgt. Oz Daniel, 19, were returned from Gaza last night.  All 3 were killed fighting Hamas on October 7, 2023.  On October 7, 2023, during the battles of the Hamas-led attack on Israel, he was killed defending kibbutz Nirim. His body was taken to Gaza by Hamas militants. He was killed during the Nirim attack on October 7, 2023, and his body was kidnapped to Gaza by the Hamas militants. A funeral proceeding for Hamami was performed without his body. The funeral was attended by thousands, including senior military officers and the Israeli Defense Minister, Yoav Gallant.  Hamami's 6-year-old son, who was present during the attack, was hidden by Hamami's soldiers in one of the rooms at the base along with his father. Only about 10 hours after the attack began was the child taken from the base and returned to his mother. On 2 November 2025, Hamami's remains were handed over by Hamas militants to Israel.

Captain Omer Neutra was just 21.  "Both of his grandparents are Holocaust survivors," Oma Neutra, Omer's mother, told CBS News New York last month. "So the ethos of needing to have a strong Jewish state is something that really resonated with him." His parents were unable to reach him on the day of the Oct. 7 attacks. More than 420 days later, they learned he died that day. They have spent the past two years pushing to keep his memory alive, calling for a release of all the remaining hostages. This dual citizen, a  Long Island native,  was a captain with the Israeli Defense Forces when he was kidnapped and killed by Hamas in the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks.  A gathering is scheduled to be held in Neutra's honor at 6 p.m. Monday at Columbus Circle in Manhattan, New York.                     

Staff Sgt. Oz Daniel, 19, was killed while battling terrorists on the Gaza border near Nirim during the October 7 onslaught, and his body was abducted. His mother related:  “Oz and I had conversations about abduction even before October 7. He always said he would do everything to avoid falling into captivity. On that day he fought the terrorists against all odds. He snatched a grenade from one of them and then they shot him to death, next to the tank,” she tells the Kan public broadcaster.Daniel was in one of the six tanks near the Gaza border the morning of Hamas's invasion into southern Israel.  When the Hamas terrorists began to cross the border, Daniel and his crew headed towards Gaza to fight. They were met with hundreds of armed terrorists, their tank was immobilized, and the driver was killed.  Footage soon emerged of three crew members, including Daniel, emerging from the tank, surrounded by terrorists. (You know, we have never been told that Hamas was fighting IDF with tanks.  I have thought of them more like guerilla fighters, on foot, hiding in tunnels, that sort of thing.) They're really more like a well-developed army!!!He is survived by his parents and his twin sister. Daniel and two others from the same tank — Cpt. Omer Maxim Neutra and Sgt. Shaked Dahan — were killed in the attack, and their bodies taken to Gaza, while soldier Nimrod Cohen was abducted alive to the Strip. Cohen was released on October 13, along with the other 19 living hostages. The Hamas terror group returned to Israel the remains of three deceased hostages, Col. Asaf Hamami, Neutra and Daniel yesterday evening.  “He has been finally brought home for a respectful burial,” Merav Daniel tells Channel 12 news.                              

Col. Roi Yosef Levy (Hebrew: רועי לוי; 29 May 1979 – 7 October 2023) 44, was an officer in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) with the rank of colonel who served in his last position as commander of the Multidimensional Unit.  

Col. Yonatan Steinberg (Hebrew: יהונתן שטיינברג; 1980 – 7 October 2023) 43, was an officer in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) with the rank of colonel, who served as the commander of the 933rd "Nahal" Brigade. He had previously served as the commander of the Center for Tactical Training in the IDF, the commander of the Binyamin Brigade [he], the Assistant Brigade Commander (Operations) of the Steel Formation, and the commander of Battalion 931. He was killed by Hamas fighters in a surprise attack on Israel in October 2023.

Col. Yitzhak Ben-Bashat  Col. Yitzhak Ben-Bashat, the former commander of the Yiftah Brigade, was also killed. "Yitzhak fought at the head of the forces and fell as a hero of Israel".This is the fifth colonel to fall in combat since Shabbat Simchat Torah (October 7th). Southern Brigade Col. Assaf Hamami HY"D (his body is in the hands of Hamas), Col. Leon Bar (Res.) HY"D, of the Judea and Samaria Division, Commander of the Multidimensional Unit Col. Roi Levy, and the Nahal Brigade Commander Col. Yonatan Steinberg HY"D were killed in battles in the Gaza Envelope on Shabbat Simchat Torah.

Col. Asaf Hamami  The fourth most senior IDF officer killed in the war, alongside Colonel Roi Levy, Colonel Yonatan Steinberg, and Colonel Yitzhak Ben-Bashat, is Colonel Asaf Hamami. All four officers held the rank of Colonel (Aluf Mishne) and were brigade commanders or held equivalent senior command roles.  

Yesterday, Al Jazeera reported that Hamas was demanding free passage for 200 terrorists “trapped” in Rafah on the Israeli side of the yellow line, some in tunnels. "Coincidentally", Hamas announced that it had discovered three hostages’ bodies. In other words, the 3 bodies for the 200 terrorists. The bodies were returned to Israel but not allowing  the terrorists to come out.  That was not a part of the cease fire deal. For a cease fire they were to return 11, not 3.  Israel is still waiting for the remaining 8.  Finish the promise, Hamas!  

Resource:

israelAM

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asaf_Hamami

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roi_Levy

https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/omer-neutra-israeli-hostage-remains-returned/

https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/fighting-until-last-breath-deceased-082333966.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yonatan_Steinberg

https://www.jfeed.com/news-israel/s5lkd2

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yitzhak_Ben-Bashat#:~:text=On%2012%20December%202023%20he,officers%20killed%20in%20this%20war.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/M5jhtFTEa2Q

https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/mother-of-oz-daniel-whose-body-was-released-last-night-i-still-had-a-small-glimmer-of-hope-hed-return-alive/