Israel says remains of 2 more hostages transferred by Hamas under Gaza deal

ISTANBUL

The Israeli army said Tuesday evening that the bodies of two more hostages were transferred by Hamas to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Gaza under a ceasefire agreement.

A military statement said two coffins of deceased captives are on their way to Israeli troops in the Gaza Strip.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement that Israel received the coffins of two hostages through the Red Cross, which were handed over to the Israeli army and the Shin Bet security service in the Gaza Strip.

The statement said the coffins will be transferred to Israel, where they will be received with military honors in the presence of the chief military rabbi.

After the ceremony, the bodies will be taken to the National Center of Forensic Medicine, part of the Health Ministry, for identification.

“Once the identification process is complete, the families will be formally notified,” the prime minister’s office added.

Hamas said early Tuesday that it would hand over the remains of two Israeli hostages after they were recovered from the rubble.

Hamas has already released 20 living Israeli hostages and handed over the remains of 14 more captives in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners under the ceasefire agreement, which took effect between Israel and Hamas on Oct. 10, based on a phased plan presented by US President Donald Trump.

Since October 2023, Israel’s genocidal war has killed more than 68,200 people in Gaza and injured more than 170,000, according to the Health Ministry.