UPDATE 2 - Hamas returns another Israeli hostage remains under Gaza ceasefire deal

UPDATES WITH STATEMENT BY ISRAELI ARMY; ADDS DECK; EDITS THROUGH

By Rania Abu Shamala and Mohammad Sio

ISTANBUL (AA) - The Palestinian group Hamas handed over the remains of another Israeli hostage on Friday night under a Gaza ceasefire agreement with Israel.

A statement by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said army forces received a coffin from Red Cross teams in the Gaza Strip, containing the remains.

The office said the remains will be taken to the National Institute of Forensic Medicine in Tel Aviv for examination and identification.

The Israeli army later announced on Saturday that it had identified the body of Sgt. Maj. Lior Rudaeff, whose remains were returned from Gaza on the night before.

A military statement said that “following the completion of the identification process by the National Institute of Forensic Medicine, in cooperation with the Israel Police and the Military Rabbinate, IDF (army) representatives informed the family of Command Sergeant Major (Res.) Lior Rudaeff that he had been returned for burial.”

The statement added that Rudaeff served as the deputy security coordinator and a member of the Nir Yitzhak community rapid response team and was killed during the October 2023 events.

His body was taken to Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023, by members of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group, the statement added.

Hamas has released 20 Israeli captives alive and handed over the remains of 24 out of 28, most of them Israelis, since the ceasefire took effect Oct. 10. Israel, however, claimed that one of the bodies did not match any of its listed captives.

Israel has tied the start of negotiations for the second phase of the ceasefire deal to the handover of all the hostage remains. Hamas said the process requires time due to the massive destruction in Gaza.

Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said his group is pursuing efforts to hand over the remaining bodies under the ceasefire “despite major difficulties and complexities.”

Phase one of the ceasefire deal includes the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. The plan also envisages the rebuilding of Gaza and the establishment of a new governing mechanism without Hamas.

Israel has killed nearly 69,000 people, mostly women and children, and injured over 170,600 others in attacks in Gaza since October 2023.