Israel Confirms Death of Soldier, 19, Held Captive in Gaza

Jerusalem, 12 March, 2024 (TPS) -- The Israel Defense Forces confirmed on Tuesday the death of a 19-year-old soldier taken captive on October 7.

Sgt. Itay Chen, a US-Israeli national, was abducted from the Nahal Oz army base near the Gaza border.

He served in a tank unit in 7th Armored Brigade’s 75th Battalion.

Chen, a New York native living in Netanya, wasn’t supposed to be on duty on October 7. He was filling in for another soldier whose brother was celebrating his bar mitzvah, a coming-of-age ceremony when a boy turns 13.

Chen’s younger brother, Alon, celebrated his bar mitzvah one week after the attack.

The Military Rabbinate declared Chen dead based on new intelligence, the IDF said.

The family will hold a funeral and sit shiva, the traditional week of mourning, when Chen’s body is returned.

At least 1,200 people were killed and 240 Israelis and foreigners were taken hostage in Hamas’s attacks on Israeli communities near the Gaza border on October 7. Of the remaining 134 hostages, Israel recently declared 31 of them dead.