Shani Louk's parents speak out on the heartbreaking moment they saw their murdered daughter's body seven months after her death - as families head to NYC to plead for hostages' release

The parents of Shani Louk have described the heartbreaking moment they saw her body seven months after Hamas terrorists killed her and paraded her half-naked body through Gaza.

This bittersweet milestone for the 22-year-old tattoo artist's family comes as relatives of the remaining Israeli hostages gathered Friday in New York City's Flatiron Plaza to demand their release.

'The body that we have now is complete and beautiful and looks like she's alive actually,' Shani's father Nissim Louk told the New York Post on Friday. 

The condition of her body was 'a miracle,' Nissim added.

'I think she'd been in one of the tunnels which was very, very cold…that's why the body is complete and beautiful and the skin is still the same color, you still see the tattoos, it's amazing,' Nissim said. 

German-Israeli tattoo artist Shani Louk, 22, was killed by Hamas in October 2023 after being kidnapped from the Nova music festival. Her body was recovered Friday in Gaza

Nissim and Ricarda Louk, the parents of Shani Louk, expressed their relief that their daughter's body was found. Nissim invited fellow Israelis to her funeral Sunday

Nissim said the family was relieved that the Israeli Defense Forces recovered Shani's body in Gaza and have brought her back to Israel. He invited other Israelis to attend to her funeral on Sunday.

Shani's mother told the DailyMail.com that her daughter's 'spirit is free.'

'It is like closing a circle. Her spirit is free already half a year, but now her body is back home and can rest in peace,' Ricarda Louk said. 

The IDF also announced Friday the discovery of the remains of hostages Itzhak Gelerenter, 53, and Amit Buskila, 28.

There are still about 100 hostages that could still be alive in Gaza, and one of them is Omer Shem-Tov. 

Shem-Tov's cousin Leat Corinne Unger, center, gave a detailed recounting of her cousin's seven month imprisonment by Hamas

Unger, right, said Shem-Tov, 21, has kept his faith despite being given little food and having to ration it to keep the Sabbath

Shem-Tov's cousin Leat Corinne Unger was at the 'Open Tent Shabbat' event in New York Friday, which was hosted by the United Jewish Appeal of Greater New York and the Jewish Community Relations Council.

Shem-Tov, 21, was one of the Israelis dragged to Gaza by Hamas terrorists during the October 7 attack on the Nova music festival. He remains in Gaza to this day.

Unger said Shem-Tov's family had to helplessly watch as his phone's location sharing revealed he was being kidnapped.

'On live location share, his family witnessed him being kidnapped to Gaza,' Unger told the Post during the event.

Unger said Shem-Tov heard gunshots at around 6:30 am. That's when he called his sister to let her know he would try to escape by car. When that plan fell through, he took off into a brush on foot. 

Hamas militants unfortunately caught up and took him away in the back of a pickup truck.

Ricarda Louk pictured with her daughter Shani. Ricard said her 'spirit is free' and she can rest in peace now that she's back in Israel

A woman walks past posters of hostages kidnapped during the deadly October 7 attack in Tel Aviv, Israel, on May 17, 2024

Unger revealed that Shem-Tov kept his faith, which she and the family learned from his friend Itay.

Itay was also abducted alongside Shem-Tov, but was later released as part of a cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas.

Once he was free, Itay told the family that he and Shem-Tov would keep track of time by listening to Muslim prayers. They'd also reportedly ration their food.

'They would scrape the salt off the pretzels they were given once and they used very little of it and saved the rest,' Unger said, adding they were also given grape juice and saved it.

'The small amount of pita bread they were given, they would take each part of their portions and recite the blessing of the Sabbath to bring light into the darkness.'

Shani Louk is pictured in July 2023, months before her death, in the Czech Republic

Pictured: Student encampment at Columbia University on April 23. They were gathered shortly before a deadline to disperse was given by Columbia's president 

Unger, a Columbia University alumna, also offered her opinion on pro-Palestine campus protests that raged all over the U.S. in recent weeks, perhaps most prominently at her alma mater.

'If you truly want to stop the suffering of innocent Palestinians, you would be demanding the release of the hostages,' Unger said. 

She continued: 'With the release of the hostages comes a ceasefire and an end of suffering and bloodshed on all sides.'

Unger described the seven months since Shem-Tov was kidnapped as a 'rollercoaster' but said his family is 'hopeful' he'll be returned safely.  

Israel is continuing its ground invasion into Rafah, and Hamas has said it will fight back 'no matter how long the aggression lasts and regardless of its form.'

UNRWA, the main U.N. aid agency for Palestinians, said more than 630,000 people had fled Rafah since the offensive began on May 6, Reuters reported.