- By Supratik Das
- Tue, 14 Oct 2025 10:08 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
Bipin Joshi Death News: As the Donald Trump-led Middle East peace summit marked a major diplomatic breakthrough with the signing of a Gaza peace deal and the release of 20 living hostages, a sombre chapter unfolded on Monday night. Hamas handed over the body of Bipin Joshi, the 25-year-old Nepali student abducted from Israel more than two years ago, to Israeli authorities, confirming his death after months of uncertainty.
Nepal’s Ambassador to Israel, Dhan Prasad Pandit, told Republica that Joshi’s remains were en route to Tel Aviv. “The body of Bipin Joshi was handed over to Israeli authorities by Hamas and is being taken to Tel Aviv,” Pandit said. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) later confirmed that Hamas had returned the bodies of four hostages, including Joshi’s.
Israeli officials said DNA tests would be conducted before his body is repatriated to Nepal. His final rites are expected to be performed in Israel, in coordination with the Nepali Embassy.
From Hope To Heartbreak
Bipin Joshi’s journey from a small town in western Nepal to the farmlands of southern Israel had begun with a dream. In September 2023, he joined 16 fellow students for an agricultural training program at Kibbutz Alumim, near the Gaza border — a program designed to teach young Nepalis Israel’s advanced farming techniques.
That dream turned to horror on October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched its deadly assault on southern Israel. As militants stormed the kibbutz, the Nepali students hid inside a bomb shelter. According to survivors, Joshi noticed a live grenade tossed inside and instinctively threw it back before it exploded, saving several lives. Moments later, he was captured and dragged into Gaza by Hamas fighters.
Video footage later surfaced showing Joshi being taken to Gaza’s Shifa Hospital, his last confirmed sighting alive. Despite tireless efforts by his family and the Nepali government, there had been no news of him since.
Family’s Long Wait Ends In Tragedy
Joshi’s sister, Pushpa Joshi, who was 15 at the time of his abduction, had led a relentless campaign for his release. She met Nepal’s top leaders, appealed to international mediators, and even traveled to Israel to join the Hostages and Missing Families Forum. “He is an innocent agriculture student with his whole life ahead of him,” she had said earlier this year.
Pushpa described her brother as her “best friend” — someone who loved to sing and dance in the rain. “He studied so hard to win that scholarship,” she recalled.
Symbol Of Sacrifice
Ten of the 17 Nepali students at Kibbutz Alumim were killed in the October 7 attack. Bipin Joshi’s bravery is credited with saving multiple lives that day. The Israeli government and Nepali embassy have both acknowledged his courage, calling him a “symbol of sacrifice and friendship between Nepal and Israel.”
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As the Trump-led summit hailed progress toward ending the long-running Gaza conflict, Bipin Joshi’s fate serves as a solemn reminder of the human cost of war — and of the young lives forever altered by it.