The mortal remains of Nepali youth Bipin Joshi, who was killed in captivity by the Palestinian militant group Hamas, were brought to Kathmandu on Monday.
Joshi, a student in Israel under the government’s ‘Learn and Earn’ programme, had been working at the Alumim kibbutz when Hamas launched its attacks on Israel on 7 October 2023.
During those assaults, Hamas killed ten other Nepalis, while Joshi’s fate remained uncertain after his abduction.
On 14 October, Israel confirmed his death after Hamas handed over his body to Israeli authorities as part of a peace agreement between the two sides.
According to Nepal’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Joshi’s remains reached Tribhuvan International Airport on Monday afternoon.
Prime Minister Sushila Karki, who also serves as Foreign Minister, joined several cabinet members, ministry officials, Israeli Ambassador Shmulik Arie Bass, and Joshi’s family at the airport to receive the body.
At a condolence ceremony held on the tarmac, Prime Minister Karki paid tribute to Joshi, praying for eternal peace to his soul and expressing her deepest sympathies to his bereaved family, the ministry stated.
Other ministers and dignitaries also offered their condolences.
Officials have arranged to fly Joshi’s body to Dhangadhi Airport in far-western Nepal and then transport it to his home district, Kanchanpur.
The Embassy of Nepal in Israel, with assistance from the Israeli government, coordinated his repatriation.
After the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, Joshi’s family had briefly hoped for his safe return when, on 9 October, they received a video shared by the Israel Defence Forces.
That hope faded when Hamas later released a list of surviving captives without Joshi’s name.
Over the past two years, Nepali diplomats and senior officials had made repeated appeals for his release, seeking support from governments in Qatar, Jordan, Egypt, the United States and other countries.
In a desperate effort to bring him home, Joshi’s mother, Padma, and sister, Pushpa, also travelled to Israel, where they met President Isaac Herzog and other senior officials, urging them to help secure his freedom.
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