Israel-Gaza-Lebanon live updates: IDF confirms death of US-Israeli hostage

The Israel Defense Forces on Monday confirmed that missing U.S.-Israeli soldier Omer Maxim Neutra, 21, was among those killed in Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack into southern Israel.

Neutra was believed taken into Gaza as a hostage by militants during the attack. But the IDF said Monday he was killed during the Oct. 7 assault and his body was taken by militants.

Neutra -- originally from New York -- was serving as a tank platoon commander in the 77th Battalion of the 7th Brigade at the time of the Hamas attack. He was among hundreds of security forces personnel killed during the assault.

Neutra's parents have been campaigning for a hostage release deal in the U.S., their activity including public appearances at the White House and the Capitol.

-ABC News' Jordana Miller

The Israel Defense Forces said Sunday it launched "several operations" targeting Hezbollah fighters that it claimed posed a direct threat to Israel "in violation of the ceasefire agreement."

Among the operations was an attack on armed militants operating close to a church in southern Lebanon, the IDF said.

Those killed "were active in the ground defense, anti-tank and artillery formations in the sector, and took part in the fighting while using the church," it wrote in a post to X.

The 60-day ceasefire that went into effect last week is holding despite continued sporadic fighting and Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon.

The deal stipulates that IDF troops will withdraw from their positions in Lebanon during the 60-day window and that Hezbollah forces will withdraw from the region south of the Litani River.

-ABC News' Jordana Miller

The father of American-Israeli hostage Edan Alexander issued an emotional request on Sunday to President Biden, President-elect Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, telling the leaders to act now to bring the hostages home "before it's too late."

A day after seeing his son for the first time in a year in a propaganda video released by Hamas' military wing, Adi Alexander of New Jersey spoke at a rally in New York City's Central Park, saying, "No father should hear his child plead for his life like that."

"President Biden, President Trump, Prime Minster Netanyahu, I call on all of you to act," Alexander said. "This is not a moment for politics or hesitation. This is a moment of courage, collaboration and decisive action."

He appealed to Biden to use the United States' influence "to negotiate a deal before it's too late."

Directing his words to Trump, he said, "You do not have to wait until January to make an impact. The world is watching. Act now."

To Netanyahu, Alexander said, "The fate of the hostages, including my son, rests in your hands. You have the power to bring them home. Don't let this opportunity slip away."

Edan Alexander, 20, was serving in the Israeli military and stationed near Gaza when he was taken captive by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7, 2023.

The White House issued a statement, saying, it has been in touch with the Alexander family and called the hostage video a “cruel reminder of Hamas’s terror against citizens of multiple countries, including our own.”

“The war in Gaza would stop tomorrow and the suffering of Gazans would end immediately-- and would have ended months ago-- if Hamas agreed to release the hostages,” White House National Security Council spokesperson Sean Savett said in a statement. "It has refused to do so, but as the President said last week, we have a critical opportunity to conclude the deal to release the hostages, stop the war, and surge humanitarian assistance into Gaza. This deal is on the table now."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will hold a security meeting Sunday night to discuss the issue of the hostages, as well as Lebanon and Syria, an Israeli official told ABC News.

-ABC News' Jordana Miller