Hamas has reportedly transferred three coffins, purported to contain the remains of deceased hostages held in Gaza, according to the Israeli military.
The coffins were received by Israel via the Red Cross in the Gaza Strip and have been transported to Israel for formal identification procedures.
Should the remains be confirmed as those of deceased hostages, it would leave eight Israeli and foreign deceased hostages remaining in Gaza.
Under the initial phase of the US-brokered ceasefire agreement with Israel, which commenced last month, Hamas committed to releasing 20 living and 28 deceased hostages.
Israel has previously accused Hamas of delays in returning the deceased hostages, while Hamas maintains it is working to recover bodies trapped under rubble within the territory.
Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, stated that the remains were discovered earlier on Sunday “along the route of one of the tunnels in the southern Gaza Strip.”
Subsequently, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s official X account announced: “All of the hostages’ families have been updated accordingly, and our hearts are with them in this difficult hour. The effort to return our hostages is ongoing and will not cease until the last hostage is returned.”
Both Hamas and Israel have levied accusations against each other regarding ceasefire violations.
On Sunday, an Israeli airstrike resulted in the death of a man in northern Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
The Israeli military reported that it had targeted a militant who posed a threat to its soldiers.
During the initial phase of the ceasefire, all living Israeli hostages were released on October 13 in exchange for 250 Palestinian prisoners and 1,718 detainees from Gaza.
Israel has reportedly handed over the bodies of 225 Palestinians in exchange for the remains of the 15 Israeli hostages thus far returned by Hamas, along with those of two foreign nationals – one Thai and one Nepalese.
Prior to Sunday’s development, nine of the 11 deceased hostages remaining in Gaza were Israeli, one was Tanzanian, and one was Thai.
All but one of the deceased hostages still in Gaza were among the 251 individuals abducted during the Hamas-led assault on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, during which approximately 1,200 others were killed.
Israel responded with a military campaign in Gaza, which has resulted in the deaths of over 68,500 people, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.
Demonstrators take to the streets over changes to an exemption from military service in one of the biggest protests of its kind for years.
The operation, which Israel says was aimed at Hezbollah, draws a furious response from the Lebanese government.
Its prospects depend heavily on the continuing engagement of the Trump White House, writes Frank Gardner.
US President Trump says “nothing” will jeopardise the two-week-old ceasefire despite the flare-up of violence.
Northern Ireland’s education minister is on a visit to Israel for what he calls a “fact-finding mission”.