(MENAFN) US Secretary of State Marco Rubio pledged Saturday to secure the return of all deceased hostages still held in Gaza, meeting with the families of two captives during his visit to Israel.

“We will not forget the lives of the hostages who died in the captivity of Hamas,” Rubio said on X. “Today I met with the families of American citizens Itay Chen and Omer Neutra. We will not rest until their, and all, remains are returned.”

The Israeli campaign group Hostages and Missing Families Forum welcomed Rubio’s remarks. “Thirteen hostages need to come home. Thirteen families need closure,” the group said on X, urging continued efforts until the last hostage is released.

Chen, a dual Israel-US national and an Israeli army sergeant, was stationed at the Gaza border when Hamas and its allies attacked on October 7, 2023. The military announced his death five months later in March 2024, stating he died in combat and his body was taken to Gaza.

Neutra, 21 at the time and also a US-Israeli national, was a volunteer soldier killed on the same day. Raised in New York, he had come to Israel to connect with his parents’ homeland and later enlisted for military service.

Under the US-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which took effect on October 10, all 20 living hostages have been freed by Palestinian militants. Remains of 15 deceased hostages have also been returned to Israel, but 13 bodies remain in Gaza.

In exchange, Israel released nearly 2,000 prisoners, mostly Palestinians, and dozens of Palestinian bodies. While the ceasefire has largely halted hostilities, Israel carried out air strikes on Sunday after reporting attacks on its troops that killed two soldiers. The strikes left dozens of Gazans dead, according to the territory’s health ministry, before Israel subsequently reinforced the ceasefire.

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