Kathmandu [Nepal], October 20 (HBTV): Nepal on Monday afternoon received the body of Bipin Joshi, an agriculture student who was killed in Hamas captivity. It was on October 13, after 738 days since his abduction, that Nepali authorities received confirmation about his death.
With successive governments formed since Joshi’s abduction, many had believed he was alive. However, the peace agreement and subsequent hostage release confirmed last week that he was no longer alive.
The Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, handed over the bodies of four captives after releasing 20 others who were alive.
A statement released by Hamas’s armed wing identified the deceased captives as Guy Ilouz, Yossi Sharabi, Bipin Joshi, and Daniel Perez.
It took a week of preparation and medical verification procedures to confirm Joshi’s identity. He was abducted by Hamas from the Alumim kibbutz along with 16 other Nepalis on October 7, 2023. Joshi was in Israel under the Learn and Earn Program.
On Monday, after the arrival of the body packed in a coffin, Nepali Interim Prime Minister Sushila Karki honoured Joshi by draping the national flag over the coffin, offering flower garlands, and paying tribute.
Following the Interim Prime Minister, other sitting ministers also paid their respects to the fallen student, who, according to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), was killed a month after his capture.
Joshi was abducted by the Palestinian militant group Hamas on October 7, 2023, from Kibbutz Alumim, a farming settlement in southern Israel near the Gaza border. A month later, the Israeli army found a video showing him alive in captivity.
As part of the first phase of the Middle East peace plan proposed by the United States to end the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, an agreement was reached to exchange hostages and Palestinian prisoners. Hamas handed over Joshi’s body last Monday. The National Centre of Forensic Medicine in Tel Aviv confirmed his identity through DNA testing.
According to a letter received by his family, Joshi died from a gunshot wound to the head. However, the exact time, place, and circumstances of his death have not yet been independently verified. Hamas claims he was killed in an Israeli airstrike, while Israel accuses Hamas of murdering him.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) earlier this month said, ‘Bipin was abducted at the age of 23 from a shelter in Kibbutz Alumim by Hamas.’
(ANI)