Israeli forces have received the remains of a deceased hostage in Gaza, which is now en route to Israel for identification, the country’s Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said Monday.
“Israel has received, through the Red Cross, the body of a fallen hostage that was handed over to IDF (Israel Defense Forces) and Shin Bet forces inside the Gaza Strip,” the PMO said in a statement.
The individual has yet to be named or formally identified.
Once in Israel, the body will be received in a military ceremony before being taken to Tel Aviv’s National Institute for Forensic Medicine for official identification.
Earlier, the IDF confirmed that the Red Cross had received a coffin carrying the remains of a deceased hostage in Gaza.
The IDF in an earlier statement asked the public to act with “sensitivity and wait for the official identification, which will first be provided to the families.”
“Hamas is required to uphold the agreement and take the necessary steps to return all the deceased hostages,” that statement added.
Hamas’ armed wing, al-Qassam Brigades, also confirmed a short while ago that the transfer was scheduled to take place.
Under the ceasefire agreement signed on October 9, Hamas was supposed to return all the living and deceased hostages within the first 72 hours of the ceasefire going into effect. Israeli intelligence has assessed that Hamas may not be able to find and return all the remaining dead hostages in Gaza.
Meanwhile, Hamas has said “significant efforts and special equipment” are needed to recover the bodies in Gaza after two years of war caused significant destruction in the territory.
Before Monday’s announcement, Hamas had returned 12 of the 28 bodies of deceased hostages agreed to be released in line with the ceasefire agreement with Israel.
All 12 of those bodies have now been formally identified, the latest of which was identified Sunday as Thai national Sonthaya Oakkharasri.
One of the bodies handed over by Hamas under the ceasefire agreement last week did not belong to an Israeli hostage, according to the Israeli military.
Initial assessments at the time suggested Hamas misidentified the body rather than intentionally sending the wrong one, an Israeli source said.
The latest news comes after the US-brokered ceasefire in Gaza appears to have survived its first major test over the weekend – with both Hamas and the Israeli military accusing the other of violations – and amid anxiety in Israel over the delayed release of deceased hostages.
Also on Sunday, Israel and Hamas affirmed their commitment to the ceasefire deal after Israel accused Hamas of carrying out an attack that killed two IDF soldiers, prompting waves of airstrikes.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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