A 21-year-old American man serving in the Israeli military has been confirmed dead.
While Omer Neutra was thought to have been hostage during the October 7, 2023 terror attack, it has since been revealed that he was killed during a battle near Nir Oz on that same day.
“I would like to send my deepest condolences to the parents of the late Captain Omar Nautra, Ronan and Orna, his family and friends. Omar, who grew up in New York and chose to immigrate to Israel out of a deep sense of mission, fell in a heroic battle near Nir Oz on October 7, 2023 and was kidnapped to the Gaza Strip by of the Hamas murderers,” Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement.
“Omer Neutra, a 21-year-old American-Israeli, served as a platoon commander in the Armored Corps,” the IDF wrote on X. “Today we can confirm, based on intelligence, that he was killed in battle on Oct. 7 and his body has been held hostage in Gaza since.”
“May his memory be a blessing.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he and his wife “send our heartfelt condolences to the parents and family of the late Captain Omar Nautra, the hero of the corps armor officer, with the bitter news of his death on the seventh of October.”
Netanyahu called Neutra “a man of values” who immigrated to Israel to enlist in the IDF.
“We will not rest or be quiet until we return home to the grave of Israel, and we will continue to act resolutely and tirelessly until we return all of our hostages – the lives and the spaces,” Netanyahu added.
