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Deir Al-Balah (Gaza Strip), Nov 6 (AP) The Israeli military on Wednesday said that Hamas has handed over the remains believed to be of a deceased hostage to the Red Cross in Gaza. The military said in a statement that the remains were being brought to Israeli forces to be returned to Israel. The handover is the latest sign of progress under the US-brokered ceasefire that began on October 10. Ahead of the announcement, Hamas had returned the remains of 21 hostages to Israel under the ceasefire terms. If the latest remains are confirmed during forensic testing, that would leave the remains of six others in Gaza. Officials at Gaza’s largest functioning hospital said on Wednesday that the bodies of 15 more Palestinians were returned from Israel, as exchanges outlined in last month’s fragile ceasefire went ahead despite allegations of violations. The International Committee of the Red Cross has transported 285 bodies held in Israeli custody to Gaza since last month’s agreement was brokered, though health officials in Gaza have said identifying the remains is complicated by a lack of DNA testing kits. Israel has not disclosed how many bodies it is holding or where they were recovered, but has been returning 15 each time the remains of an Israeli hostage are returned from Gaza. The 15 were returned to Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis on Wednesday, a day after Palestinian militants in Gaza handed over the body of Itay Chen, an Israeli soldier killed in the October 7, 2023, attack that started the war. His family mourned after being notified of Chen’s return, which they called bittersweet, and demanded further inquiry into how the attack was able to happen, according to a statement from Israel’s Hostages and Missing Families Forum. The exchanges are the central component of the initial phase of the US-brokered agreement, which requires Hamas to return all hostage remains as quickly as possible. The exchanges have gone ahead even as Israel and Hamas have accused each other of breaching other terms of the deal. Hamas has said recovering bodies is complicated by the widespread devastation in the coastal enclave and has returned one to three bodies every few days. It has accused Israel of opening fire at civilians and restricting the flow of humanitarian aid into the territory. The number of casualties has dropped since the ceasefire took effect. But health officials in Gaza – who do not distinguish between civilians and militants – have continued to report deaths from strikes, while Israel has said that soldiers have also been killed. The deal will not move to subsequent phases until all the remains of Israeli hostages are returned. (AP) ARI
