Kfar Maas (AFP) — Two hostages whose bodies were recovered from Gaza last week were buried by family and friends in Israel on Monday in separate ceremonies.

The Israeli military on Friday announced the return of the remains of Idan Shtivi, 28, and Ilan Weiss, 55, from the Palestinian territory, nearly 23 months after they were both killed on 7 October 2023.

Shtivi, a student who had been attending the Nova music festival as a volunteer photographer when Hamas-led militants stormed the site, was laid to rest in Kfar Maas in central Israel.

His mother Dalit spoke in her eulogy of the “divine bond” with her son, asking him to “forgive me for not being able to protect and keep you safe” during the ceremony, where mourners gathered around his casket draped in an Israeli flag.

For nearly a year, Shtivi’s family clung to hope that he was still alive, before Israeli authorities informed them on the eve of the first anniversary of the attack that he had been killed.

The student had tried to flee the scene with two wounded people he was attempting to rescue, but lost control of his car, which crashed into a tree. The car was found riddled with bullet holes.