Tel Aviv. After the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, the process of prisoner exchange has now begun. Hamas released 20 living prisoners. Meanwhile, Hamas’s armed wing, Al-Qassam Brigades, has made public the names of four dead Israeli hostages and handed over their bodies, including the body of a Hindu student, Bipin Joshi, whose death has been confirmed.

The body of Hamas abducted prisoner Bipin Joshi has been returned to Israel after more than two years. Joshi was known for his bravery during the October 7, 2023, attack. He had bravely rescued four of his friends. Joshi, a Nepalese student, was 22 years old at the time of the Hamas attack and had come from Nepal for an agricultural training program at Kibbutz Alumim near the Gaza border. He is believed to be the only surviving non-Israeli and Hindu hostage in Gaza. Late Monday night, Hamas handed over his body to Israeli authorities.

Bipin Joshi’s journey to Israel began in September 2023, when he joined 16 other students for an agricultural study and work program at Kibbutz Alumim, a community near the Gaza border. This initiative provided Nepali students with hands-on training in Israeli agricultural practices. When Hamas militants launched a surprise attack on the morning of October 7th, the students took refuge in a bomb bunker.

According to the Times of Israel, when grenades were thrown inside, Joshi picked up a live grenade and threw it away before it exploded, saving many lives. He was injured in the attack and later captured by Hamas gunmen and taken to Gaza. Video footage released by the Israeli military afterward showed Joshi being dragged to Shifa Hospital in Gaza, the last known sighting of him alive.