The bodies of six hostages being held by Hamas have been retrieved from an "underground tunnel route" inside the Gaza Strip, Israel's military has said.
A statement from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the bodies of Yagev Buchshtab, Alexander Dancyg, Avraham Munder, Yoram Metzger, Chaim Peri and British-Israeli Nadav Popplewell were recovered from the Khan Younis area on Monday.
Five of their deaths had already been announced by Israel, though it was thought Avraham Munder could still be alive.
The overnight recovery operation was carried out by the IDF alongside the security agency Shin Bet.
During the operation, the IDF said its forces located a 10m (33ft) deep tunnel shaft which led to an "underground tunnel route", inside which the bodies were found.
They were retrieved after "prolonged combat in a built-up area and in multi-story buildings".
The six men were all kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz and Kibbutz Nirim, near Israel’s border fence with Gaza, during Hamas's attacks on southern Israel on 7 October.
In June, Israel confirmed the deaths of Mr Popplewell, 51, Mr Peri, 79, and Mr Metzger, 80. The IDF stated the three men had died during an Israeli operation in Khan Younis.
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