By Betul Yilmaz
ISTANBUL (AA) - The Gaza Health Ministry said Sunday that it had received the remains of 15 more Palestinian prisoners from Israel via Red Cross teams under a ceasefire agreement.
A ministry statement said that medical teams are handling the remains in accordance with approved forensic and medical protocols, including examination, documentation, and identification procedures, before returning them to families.
“Some of the bodies show signs of abuse, beatings, with bound hands, and blindfolded eyes,” the ministry added.
The new handover brought the number of dead bodies returned from Israel to 150 since the ceasefire took effect on Oct. 10.
The ministry said that families have so far identified 25 victims through an online reference system established to match remains with missing persons.
The ceasefire and hostage swap agreement was reached between Israel and Hamas last week, based on a phased plan presented by US President Donald Trump. Phase one included the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. The plan also envisages the rebuilding of Gaza and the establishment of a new governing mechanism without Hamas.
Since October 2023, the Israeli genocidal war has killed nearly 68,200 people and injured more than 170,200, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.