The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Monday that Muhammad el-Atrash, an Arab Bedouin who worked as a military tracker, was killed in fighting with Hamas on October 7 and that his body was in Gaza custody.
El-Atrash was believed to be one of the Israeli hostages. It was unclear how the IDF confirmed his death.
Jewish News Syndicate (JNS) report:
Atrash, 39, of the Bedouin village of Sawa in the northern Negev, served as a tracker with the Gaza Strip’s North Brigade, but the IDF had not disclosed his military history until Monday night.
Israeli Channel 12 NewsHe has 13 children. In the first months after the October 7 attacks, Atrash’s fate remained unknown and it was only in early December that his family was reportedly informed that he had been taken to Gaza as a hostage.
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The Israel Defense Forces said on Monday that Atrash’s body had been removed from the border area after fighting terrorists, adding that his death was confirmed “after verifying all findings and based on reliable information.”
Israeli government spokesman David Mensah mourned El-Atrash’s death at a press conference on Monday.
Arabs make up 20 percent of Israel’s population, most of whom are Muslim but a small number are Christian. Most Israeli Arabs are not conscripted into the IDF, but many Bedouin Arabs volunteer as trackers, using their expertise and experience in the desert. Many Druze Arabs have also been conscripted into the Israeli army. Hamas killed dozens of Israeli Arabs on October 7 in a particularly brutal killing spree, and kidnapped several Arabs among its Israeli hostages.
There are an estimated 115 Israeli hostages still held in Gaza, of which between 50 and 70 are believed to still be alive.
Joel B. Pollack is executive editor of Breitbart News. Breitbart News Sunday The show airs Sunday nights from 7 to 10 p.m. (4 to 7 p.m. ET) on SiriusXM Patriot. He is the author of his recently published e-book,The Zionist Conspiracy (And How to Join It)” is available on Audible. He is also the author of an e-book. Not Free or Fair: The 2020 US Presidential ElectionHe is the recipient of the Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship in 2018. Follow him on Twitter. Joel Pollack.
