By Betul Yilmaz
ISTANBUL (AA) - Palestinian group Hamas said it will transfer the remains of another Israeli hostage on Tuesday under a ceasefire agreement.
The group’s armed wing, the Qassam Brigades, said in a statement on the official Telegram channel that the body will be handed over at 4 pm local time (1400 GMT) with the Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad group.
No details were provided about the location of the handover.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli army.
Hamas has already released 20 Israeli captives alive and handed over the remains of 27 out of 28, most of them Israelis, since the ceasefire took effect on Oct. 10. Israel, however, claimed that one of the received bodies did not match any of its listed captives.
Phase one of the ceasefire deal includes 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 army has killed nearly 70,000 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, and injured more than 170,900 people in a two-year war that has left much of the enclave in ruins.