Hamas Returned Remains Of 3 More Deceased Hostages, Says Israel

Israel on Sunday received the remains of three more deceased hostages held in Gaza, according to authorities.

According to CNN, the remains were transferred to Israel via the Red Cross and will be taken to the country’s national forensics laboratory for identification. However, the bodies are yet to be confirmed if they were of three Israeli hostages. If confirmed, it would leave the bodies of eight deceased hostages remaining in Gaza.

CNN quoted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as saying that Israel is committed to ensuring the return of all the deceased hostages. Speaking at the weekly cabinet meeting, Netanyahu accused Hamas of “pathetic attempts to deceive us, the United States, and the world. They will, of course, fail, and we will gradually

bring back all our hostages.”

He further said that Israel is still operating against “Hamas pockets” in Rafah and Khan Younis, areas that are under IDF control, “and we are systematically eliminating them”.

PTI quoted a Hamas statement earlier stating that the remains were found Sunday in a tunnel in southern Gaza.

Since the US-brokered ceasefire deal took effect on October 10, the Palestinian militants have released remains of 17 hostages, with 11 remaining in Gaza.

While the militants continue to release one or two bodies every few days, Israel has urged faster progress. Hamas said the work is complicated by widespread devastation.

In the October 2023 attack on Israel, Hamas-led militants killed about 1,200 people and took 251 others hostage. As per the official data, Israel’s military offensive has killed more than 68,600 Palestinians in Gaza in the last two years.