The bodies of an Israeli family of five slaughtered by Hamas were found together in a heart-wrenching embrace, according to a local news outlet.
Aviv Kutz, 54, his wife, Livnat, 49, and their children, Rotem, 19, Yonatan 17, and Yiftach 15, were murdered by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7 in their home on the Kfar Aza kibbutz, the Times of Israel reported.
The family was initially counted among the missing until neighbors discovered them together in bed with Aviv holding his family in a protective embrace, according to the newspaper.
"They were all amazing kids with huge hearts. They had their whole lives ahead of them," said their aunt, Adi Levy Salama.
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The family had moved to Kfar Aza after spending several years in Boston, Salama said.
The Kutz family was among more than 1,300 Israelis – mostly civilians – massacred by Hamas terrorists in a surprise attack.
"On the day they were murdered, we were supposed to visit them," Salama added. "Aviv organized an annual kite festival along the fence with Gaza to show them that we just want to live in peace."
Kfar Aza is less than two miles from the border with Gaza. Aviv was deputy director of a consulting firm and Livnat was a graphic designer. She was born in 1973 during the Yom Kippur War – a battle that has been compared to the current conflict for Israel's stunning intelligence failure.
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Their daughter, Rotem, was a soldier who trained new recruits while their sons, Yonatan and Yiftach, were high school students who dreamed of becoming professional basketball players, the Times of Israel reported.
Another couple that lived in Kfar Aza remained missing for nearly a week as their families held out hope. But on Friday, Niv Raviv, 27, and 31-year-old Nirel Zini were identified as victims of the devastating ambush, according to Ynet News.
Zini's family received a haunting message from him on Oct. 7: "They're here. I'm putting the phone down, pray," he wrote.
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The couple met in the army eight years earlier. They both had careers in the military reserves, with Raviv as a captain and Zini as a major, Ynet reported.
The couple had moved to the kibbutz six months prior, and Zini had planned to propose to her three days before they were murdered.
The engagement ring was later recovered in their burnt-out home near their bodies, the outlet reported.
Meanwhile, the Gaza health ministry has reported that more than 2,750 Palestinians have been killed since Israel launched retaliatory airstrikes.
An Israeli invasion of Gaza remains imminent, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
