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Israel has identified the body of a hostage that Hamas handed over on Tuesday in Gaza as that of Israeli-American Staff Sergeant Itay Chen, according to reports. The 19-year-old was serving as a soldier when Hamas carried out the surprise rampage in October 2023 through southern Israeli towns and military bases. Israel received the body from Hamas via the Red Cross in Gaza, the Prime Minister's Office said, after the Palestinian group reported it had found the remains of another hostage to be handed over. The office confirmed the body was that of Staff Sergeant Chen following an identification process. Hamas said it had found the body in Shejaia, an eastern suburb of Gaza City in an area still occupied by Israeli forces, after Israel granted access to the location for teams from Hamas and the International Committee of the Red Cross. Including Chen, Hamas has returned 21 of the 28 bodies of hostages that were buried in Gaza. In return, Israel handed over 270 bodies of Palestinians it had killed since the war began in October 2023, Gaza health authorities said. The ceasefire is aimed at winding down the deadliest and most destructive war ever fought between Israel and the Palestinian militant group. The military wing of Hamas said earlier it had recovered the body of an Israeli soldier in Gaza and intended to hand over the remains. At that time Israel's statement did not indicate whether the remains were of a soldier, according to Associated Press. Militants in Gaza have released one to three bodies every few days. Israel has pushed to speed up the returns and in certain cases has said the remains were not those of hostages. Hamas has said the work is complicated by widespread devastation. For each Israeli hostage returned, Israel has been releasing the remains of 15 Palestinians. So far the bodies of 270 Palestinians have been handed over under the current ceasefire. Fewer than half have been identified. Forensic work is complicated by a lack of DNA testing kits in Gaza. The Health Ministry there posts photos of the remains online, in the hope that families will recognise them. The war was triggered by the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 Oct 2023, that killed about 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage. Israel responded with a sweeping military offensive that has killed more than 68,800 Palestinians in Gaza, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between combatants and civilians. The ministry, part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals, maintains detailed records viewed as generally reliable by independent experts. Israel, which has denied accusations by a UN commission of inquiry and others of committing genocide in Gaza, has disputed the ministry’s figures without providing a contradicting toll.
