Amid celebrations over a U.S.-brokered Gaza ceasefire that saw Hamas release 20 living hostages on October 13, a sombre revelation emerged: the body of Bipin Joshi, a 24-year-old Nepalese Hindu student abducted during the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, has been confirmed dead and handed over to Israeli authorities. Nepal's Ambassador to Israel, Dhan Prasad Pandit, informed Nepali media that Joshi's remains arrived in Tel Aviv late Monday, alongside those of three other deceased captives: Guy Illouz, Yossi Sharabi, and Daniel Perez. Israeli military spokesperson Effie Defrin verified the transfer, noting DNA testing will precede repatriation to Nepal for final rites, coordinated with the embassy. Joshi, believed to be the only Hindu among 251 hostages taken that day, would have turned 25 on October 26.

Joshi's path to tragedy began in September 2023, when the agriculture student from Bhimdatta, far-western Nepal, arrived in Israel under the "Learn and Earn" programme for hands-on training at Kibbutz Alumim, just 2.5 miles from Gaza. Joined by 16 compatriots, he sought skills in modern farming to uplift his family's modest farm. The October 7 assault shattered this dream: Hamas militants stormed the kibbutz, killing 1,200 and abducting 251, including 10 Nepalis slain and Joshi captured. In a bomb shelter, as gunmen hurled grenades, Joshi heroically seized a second explosive—after the first injured peers—and flung it back, saving lives before being overpowered and dragged into Gaza. Israeli footage later showed him at Shifa Hospital, his final confirmed sighting alive.

For 738 days, Joshi's family clung to hope amid diplomatic pleas. His mother, Padma, and sister, Pushpa, visited Israel in August 2025, meeting President Isaac Herzog and rallying at Tel Aviv's Hostage Square, then travelled to the U.S. for advocacy. In October, they released a Hamas-filmed video from November 2023, showing Joshi under duress but alive, fuelling optimism for the Trump-led peace summit's 20-point plan—encompassing hostage releases, Hamas disarmament, and international oversight. Yet, Hamas's announcement omitted Joshi from the living list, declaring him deceased alongside 26 others verified dead by Israel via intelligence. The group cited Israeli operations for untraceable fates, a claim dismissed as psychological warfare by Israel's ambassador to Nepal.

Also Read: Pune Police Intervene After MNS Students Trespass ABVP Office

Joshi's death, the sole non-Israeli fatality returned in this phase, underscores the war's indiscriminate toll—over 41,000 Palestinian deaths per the Gaza health ministry and enduring trauma for 48 remaining captives, including 20 presumed alive and 28 bodies withheld. Nepal's government, which evacuated 180 citizens post-attack, expressed grief and renewed calls for full resolutions. As his remains undergo autopsy at Israel's forensic institute, Padma's earlier plea—"Please, save my son"—echoes as a haunting reminder of lost potential. In a conflict now pivoting to reconstruction, Joshi's story bridges distant shores, symbolising global vulnerability and the fragile promise of peace.

Also Read: Hot Mic Reveals Indonesian President Requesting Private Talk with Eric Trump