Hamas Says It Has Returned All Recoverable Hostage Bodies to Israel
Two additional bodies handed to Red Cross as pressure mounts on Netanyahu over next steps
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) — Hamas announced Wednesday that it has handed over all the bodies of deceased Israeli hostages it was able to recover, as the Israeli military confirmed that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) had received two more bodies in Gaza under a ceasefire deal brokered by US President Donald Trump.
The development comes amid the ongoing truce, which has already seen the release of 20 surviving Israeli hostages in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.
Hamas had returned the remains of seven of 28 known deceased hostages, along with an additional body later identified by Israel as unrelated to the captives.
In a statement released late Wednesday, Hamas’s military wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, said it had fulfilled its part of the agreement. “The Resistance has handed over all living Israeli prisoners in its custody, as well as the corpses it could access,” the group said, adding that retrieving the remaining bodies would require “specialized recovery equipment” due to the extensive destruction in Gaza.
The Israeli military confirmed that “two coffins of deceased hostages” were transferred to the Red Cross and are being delivered to Israeli forces inside Gaza.
Israeli authorities, however, insisted Hamas must “uphold the agreement and take all necessary steps” to ensure the full return of hostages’ remains.
The issue of unrecovered bodies has reignited political debate in Israel, with mounting domestic pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to link humanitarian aid to the return of all deceased hostages.
Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir has threatened to block aid deliveries to Gaza unless Hamas hands over the remains of Israeli soldiers still held in the enclave.
The latest exchanges are part of a fragile ceasefire negotiated by Washington after two years of devastating conflict between Israel and Hamas, which left much of Gaza in ruins and caused severe humanitarian suffering.
The truce — the first since hostilities reignited in 2023 — has been viewed as a diplomatic breakthrough for Trump, who has sought to present himself as a peacemaker ahead of a regional summit in Egypt.
Despite the progress in the prisoner and hostage exchanges, tensions remain high. Israeli officials have warned that any breach of the ceasefire could trigger renewed military operations, while Hamas has accused Israel of delaying the entry of vital aid shipments.
Both sides continue to face pressure — Israel’s to secure full accountability for its hostages, and Hamas’s to demonstrate it has not surrendered to Israeli or US demands.
As recovery efforts continue in Gaza’s devastated landscape, the fate of the remaining bodies — and the durability of the Trump-brokered truce — may determine whether the region inches closer to lasting calm or returns to another cycle of violence.
