The mother of the Plainview-raised Israeli American soldier killed by Hamas in the Oct. 7 attacks, told Newsday on Monday night that the excruciating wait for the return of her son's remains has been "surreal" and that her family desperately needs the "closure" that can only occur after giving him a proper burial.

In an interview from Israel, Orna Neutra described how the elation of watching the last 20 living hostages being released from Gaza last week was tinged with the grief of knowing that her son Omer was not among those coming home.

"It was nothing short of a miracle to see them back alive, standing on their own two feet," Neutra said. "But of course, we know that Omer is not going to come back to us in that same way. So it's very painful. And there's also a lot of anxiety among t

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