Hamas Returns Remains of Israeli Captive from Gaza

Share and Follow

Hamas has handed over the body of another Israeli hostage, the militant group and Israeli military have confirmed.

It comes amid an ongoing dispute about the delay in the handover of the remains of hostages by Hamas.

Israel says it has received nine of 28 bodies held in Gaza, and Hamas, citing technical problems, said it needed heavy machinery and excavating equipment to speed up the process of locating bodies buried under rubble.

Israel has urged Hamas to disclose the locations of the hostages’ bodies, warning that the group is running out of time to do so.

Hamas has said it remains committed to the ceasefire agreement and to handing over the bodies of all remaining hostages.

In a statement on Friday, Hamas’s armed wing said a new body had been recovered and would be released at 11pm local time.

The Israeli Defense Forces have confirmed that the exchange took place at approximately 1 a.m. local time (9 a.m. AEDT).

Concerns are mounting within the international community about whether Israel might use Hamas’s inability to locate bodies trapped under debris as a justification to disrupt the ceasefire, one observer noted.

The issue has cast a shadow over the ceasefire agreement — the first phase of US President Donald Trump’s 20-point plan to end the war.

At a news conference in Ankara, Turkish foreign minister Hakan Fidan said Israel’s statements were worrying.

On Friday, Red Cross teams and Palestinian rescue workers were engaged in efforts to recover the remains of Israeli hostages from the rubble in Khan Younis, Gaza. Source: Anadolu, Getty / Hani Alshaer

An excavator digs up dirt among rubble and as a crowd of Palestinians watch on

Earlier on Friday, Hamas called on mediators to push for the next steps under the ceasefire, including reopening the border, letting in aid, beginning reconstruction, setting up an administration and completing Israel’s withdrawal.

Fighting has largely stopped in Gaza under Trump’s plan, endorsed by mediators Egypt, Qatar and Turkey.

However, Gaza’s Civil Defence Service on Friday said 11 people were killed when Israeli troops opened fire on a vehicle southeast of Gaza City, including seven children and three women.

The Israeli military did not comment on the incident.

The 20 living hostages taken with others in the October 7 attack on Israel were returned from Gaza earlier this week.

Israel on Thursday said it was preparing for the reopening of Gaza’s Rafah crossing with Egypt to allow Palestinians to move in and out, but gave no date as it traded blame with Hamas over violations of the ceasefire.

Other unresolved elements of the plan include the disarmament of militants and Gaza’s future governance.