Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, today, spoke with Oxana and Grigory Lobanov, the parents of Alexander Lobanov, who was murdered while being held hostage by Hamas.
The Prime Minister expressed deep regret, and apologized to the family, that the State of Israel did not succeed in returning Alexander and the other five hostages alive.
Prime Minister Netanyahu told Alexander Lobanov's parents "I would like to tell you how much I regret and request forgiveness for not succeeding in bringing Sasha back alive."
During the conversation, it was revealed that the Prime Minister's Military Secretary, Maj.-Gen. Roman Gofman returned this morning from a visit to Moscow, the goal of which was to advance the hostages deal and during which he discussed Alexander Lobanov and the other hostages.
Prime Minister Netanyahu has spoken, and will speak, with additional families in the course of the day.
Overnight, the IDF recovered the bodies of Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi, and Master-Sergeant Ori Danino from Rafah.
IDF Spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said this morning, "A few hours ago, we informed the families that the bodies of their loved ones had been located by IDF troops in an underground tunnel in Rafah. According to our initial assessment, they were brutally murdered by Hamas terrorists shortly before we reached them."
An Israeli source said this morning that three of the hostages who were murdered in captivity and whose bodies were brought back to Israel by the IDF were on the list of hostages that Hamas had agreed to return in the deal proposed in early July.