YnetNews.com reports: “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the nation Sunday morning following the announcement by the IDF of the recovery of the bodies of six hostages—Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Ori Danino, Eden Yerushalmi, Alex Lobanov, Almog Sarusi and Carmel Gat.

‘This is a difficult day. The heart of the entire nation is torn. Along with all the citizens of Israel, I was deeply shocked by the cold-blooded murder of our six hostages. My wife and I, together with the entire nation, mourn with the families. We grieve with them,’ Netanyahu said in a pre-recorded statement.

‘I want to express my deep appreciation to our forces, to the brave soldiers of the IDF and the Shin Bet fighters, who risk their lives to bring our sons and daughters home. To the Hamas terrorists who murdered our hostages and to their leaders, I say: Your blood is on your heads. We will not rest or be silent. We will hunt you down, we will find you, and we will hold you accountable.

‘Citizens of Israel, we are fighting on all fronts against a brutal enemy that seeks to kill us all. Just this morning, they murdered three police officers in Hebron. My wife and I send our deepest condolences to their families. We witnessed the unimaginable cruelty of Hamas killers on October 7, and we saw it again in the tunnels beneath Rafah. The fact that Hamas continues to commit atrocities like those of October 7 compels us to do everything to ensure they can never commit such horrors again.’

Netanyahu emphasized the ongoing efforts to secure the release of remaining hostages. ‘Our efforts to free our hostages continue at all times. Since December, Hamas has refused to engage in genuine negotiations. On May 27, Israel agreed to a hostage release deal with full U.S. backing. Hamas refused. Even after the U.S. revised the deal on August 16, we agreed, and Hamas refused again…”