The death of Nepali student Bipin Joshi, who was held captive by the Palestinian militant group Hamas, was confirmed on Monday, one week after the two-year mark of his capture. His body, along with those of three others, was transferred to Israel via the International Red Cross on Monday night.
Hamas claims Bipin was killed during an Israeli airstrike on the Gaza Strip. However, the exact date of his death has not been disclosed. Hamas had taken Bipin hostage from Kibbutz Alumim in the southern Israeli region of Sdot Negev, near the Gaza border, during their attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. During that attack, 251 people, including Bipin, were taken hostage.
This transfer occurred under the first phase of a US-backed peace plan agreed upon in Egypt, which aims to end the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. The plan had set a Monday deadline for Hamas to hand over 20 living hostages and the bodies of 26 deceased hostages. The Israeli government had formally informed Nepal on Monday morning at 7:30 AM local time that Bipin was no longer alive.
“The Israeli army called at 7:30 AM Israel time. A group video call took place between me, Bipin’s brother Kishor, sister Pushpa, and a representative of the Israeli army,” Dhan Prasad Pandit, the Nepali Ambassador to Israel, told Kantipur. “During the call, the Israeli army informed us that Bipin Joshi was not on the list of living hostages received from Hamas.” The information about the recovery of his body was provided only in the evening.
As part of the agreement, Hamas began releasing hostages on Monday at 8 AM local time, first freeing 7 and then another 13 individuals. In return, Israel has released 250 prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment and 1,700 detainees held in Gaza. Hamas included Bipin in the first group of deceased hostages to be returned, along with Israeli citizens Gadi Ilouz, Yossi Sharabi, and Daniel Peretz. Hamas has not yet made public the timeline for transferring the remaining 22 bodies. The Israeli army has stated that the bodies will undergo DNA testing before being handed over to their families. A DNA sample from Bipin’s mother, Padma, had already been collected previously.
The Hostages and Missing Persons Forum has described Hamas’s action as “painful but significant.” The group stated in a release, “These families have finally learned the final status of their loved ones; that truth is extremely harsh.”
