Israel announced on Monday that the Red Cross had delivered another deceased hostage’s body from Gaza to the Israeli military, as stated by the Israeli prime minister’s office. This brings the total number of remaining hostages’ bodies in Gaza to 12, pending confirmation of the identity of the deceased individual. The search for these bodies has been hindered by challenges cited by the Palestinian militant group Hamas, related to the destruction caused by the conflict.
The recovery and transfer of deceased hostages’ bodies in Gaza have presented challenges to the implementation of U.S. President Donald Trump’s Gaza plan. A spokesperson from the Israeli government revealed that Hamas has knowledge of the locations of the bodies. In response, Israel permitted an Egyptian technical team, in collaboration with the Red Cross, to begin the search for the bodies using excavators and trucks beyond the designated yellow line in Gaza, where Israeli forces had initially withdrawn according to Trump’s plan.
The process of retrieving and returning the remains of the hostages has been ongoing. The demand for the return of the remaining 19 hostages’ bodies by Israel continues, with Hamas indicating the need for heavy machinery to access these bodies. So far, a total of nine hostages’ bodies have been repatriated, with solemn funerals held in Israel for those whose remains were returned.