Israeli army says Red Cross on its way to receive bodies of hostages in Gaza

By Mohammad Sio

ISTANBUL (AA) - The Israeli army on Tuesday evening said that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is on its way to a designated location in the northern Gaza Strip to receive the bodies of several Israeli hostages.

“According to information received, the Red Cross is on its way to the meeting point in the northern Gaza Strip, where several coffins of deceased hostages will be transferred into their custody,” the army said in a statement.

The army did specify the number of bodies to be handed over to the Red Cross.

There has been no official confirmation yet from Hamas in this regard.

The Palestinian group handed over the remains of four Israeli captives on Monday under a Gaza ceasefire agreement.

Hamas released 20 living Israeli hostages early Monday in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners under the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal.

Last week, US President Donald Trump announced that Israel and Hamas had agreed to the first phase of a plan he laid out Sept. 29 to bring a ceasefire to Gaza, release all Israeli captives in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, and a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from the entire Gaza Strip. The first phase of the deal came into force on Friday.

Phase two of the plan calls for the establishment of a new governing mechanism in Gaza without Hamas’ participation, the formation of a multinational force, and the disarmament of Hamas.

Since October 2023, Israeli attacks have killed over 67,900 Palestinians in the enclave, most of them women and children, and rendered it largely uninhabitable.