The Israeli military confirmed Monday that captain Omer Maxim Neutra, 21, was killed during the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack. His body is being held hostage in the Gaza Strip.
Neutra’s death has been confirmed 14 months after the Hamas attack. The military’s rabbinate declared his death based on new intelligence. It was previously believed that Neutra was alive and held hostage.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered condolences to Neutra’s family and promised to return his body to Israel.
“Omer was a man of values, blessed with talents and a Zionist in every sense of the word,” said Netanyahu. “He immigrated to Israel to enlist in the IDF, chose a combat path and was chosen to command and lead.”
Netanyahu added, “Israel will not rest or be silent until we return him home for a Jewish burial, and we will continue to act resolutely and tirelessly until we return all of our hostages.”
Who was Neutra?
Omer Maxim Neutra, a “lone soldier” from New York, US, served as a tank platoon commander, according to the Israel-based news outlet The Times of Israel. His parents were not in Israel. He commanded a tank platoon in the 7th Armored Brigade’s 77th Battalion. His tank crew included Sgt Shaked Dahan as the driver, Sgt Nimrod Cohen as the gunner, and Sgt Oz Daniel as the loader.
Basketball team captain to Israeli army
Neutra was a Knicks fan while growing up in Long Island, New York, and served as captain of his high school basketball team, as well as the volleyball and soccer teams when needed.
Neutra postponed his plans to attend Binghamton University to join the Israeli army after spending a gap year in Israel in 2020.
His parents, Ronen and Orna Neutra, last contacted him on October 6. After learning of the October 7 attacks, Ronen Neutra repeatedly attempted to reach his son. Eventually, the family learned of his capture.
“They said that he’s been taken captive,” said Orna Neutra, as quoted by The Times of Israel. “So many have died that it’s just insane to feel relief thinking that your son is not dead, you know?” Ronen Neutra previously told CBS News that his son was interested in peace-building and planned to return to Long Island to attend college. “That’s just the kind of person he is,” said Ronen Neutra.
How was Neutra killed?
On the morning of October 7, 2023, Neutra was stationed in a tank near the Gaza border by the southern community of Nahal Oz. During Hamas’s assault on southern Israel, their tank came under attack with RPG fire and explosives. All four crew members were abducted to Gaza.
Widely circulated footage from the attack showed individuals in civilian clothing standing on and around the smoking, flaming tank as Hamas terrorists dragged the soldiers out.
Dahan’s death was confirmed in November 2023, and Daniel’s in February 2024. Now, after 14 months, Neutra’s death has also been confirmed. According to the IDF, all three were killed on October 7, 2023.
Of the 251 hostages abducted by Hamas on October 7, 2023, it is believed 97 remain in Gaza, including the bodies of at least 35 confirmed dead, per the IDF.
Hamas released 105 civilians during a weeklong truce in late November 2023, following the earlier release of four hostages. Eight hostages have been rescued alive by troops, and the bodies of 37 hostages have been recovered, including three accidentally killed during escape attempts.
Hamas is also holding the bodies of two IDF soldiers killed in 2014 and two Israeli civilians, believed to be alive, who entered Gaza independently in 2014 and 2015.
