Jerusalem:

A German-Israeli woman, who was abducted by Hamas and shown comatose on the back of a truck in video footage of the Oct. 7 attack, was found dead and decapitated. The Israeli authorities announced on Monday that it had located and identified Shani Louk’s body, in a post on the social networking site X. "We are devastated to share that the body of 23-year-old German-Israeli Shani Louk was found and identified," the post said.

"Shani, who was kidnapped from a music festival and tortured and paraded around Gaza by Hamas terrorists, experienced unfathomable horrors. Our hearts are broken. May her memory be a blessing," it said.

Israeli President Yitchak Herzog went into further detail on the finding of Louk's body in an interview with the German daily BILD. "Her skull has been found, which implies that as they attacked, tormented, and murdered Israelis, these savage, vicious animals merely hacked off her head. I send her family my sincerest condolences; it is a terrible loss," he said.

Louk was among the thousands of people present at the Israeli Tribe of Nova music festival when Hamas terrorists attacked, killing hundreds of people and kidnapping others.

Social media users shared the gruesome video of an unconscious Louk in a pickup truck. She can be seen in the footage with her legs twisted strangely and face down. Her family recognized her as the woman being abused even though her face was hidden in the recordings due to her dreadlocks and tattoos.

On Monday, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the news of Shani Lok’s death was terrible.  He said she was ruthlessly murdered. This embodies all the heinousness of the Hamas assault, which calls for retribution. Israel is entitled to self-defense since these constitute acts of terrorism.

Meanwhile, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, disclosed in a recent interview that Hamas, the terrorist organization is preventing hundreds of Americans from leaving Gaza.

He said 500 to 600 US passport holders are said to be stuck in Gaza and are attempting to escape. The region is experiencing heightened tensions as Israel continues to expand its military operations in Gaza, many weeks after 1,400 people were killed in Hamas' offensive on October 7.

Sullivan, the national security advisor added that Egypt is prepared to permit Americans and other foreign people to leave Gaza and that the government is trying to assist them in doing so. "But Hamas is preventing their departure and making a series of demands," added Sullivan.

US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly discussed the Gaza crisis, including the release of the more than 200 hostages held by Hamas, including some Americans, in a statement released by the White House on Sunday. The two also decided to stay in touch via their respective security teams.

Israel has restored the second of its three water pipelines to supply water to the Gaza Strip, as The Times of Israel reported on Sunday. The outlet did point out that 90% of Gaza's water comes from its sources and aims to pass via desalination facilities. During a televised news conference on Saturday, the Israeli prime minister said the goal is to eradicate the terrorist group and secure the release of the hostages.

The Israel Defence Forces have frequently called on civilians in Gaza to leave in anticipation of their upcoming invasion. It said that Hamas continues to use the civilians of Gaza as human shields, not allowing them to evacuate.