Tel Aviv, MINA – Israel announced Tuesday that it had received the bodies of four hostages from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) inside the Gaza Strip, as part of the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement with Hamas.
According to Israel’s official broadcaster KAN, the four coffins were transferred to the Israeli army in Gaza by the Red Cross. The Israeli military confirmed the handover, saying: “According to information provided by the Red Cross, four coffins of deceased hostages have been transferred into their custody and are on their way to IDF and ISA forces in the Gaza Strip.”
Earlier, the army reported that Red Cross teams were en route to northern Gaza to collect the bodies of several hostages as part of the ongoing implementation of the ceasefire deal. There has been no official statement from Hamas regarding the handover.
The Palestinian group delivered the remains of four Israeli captives on Monday, alongside the earlier release of 20 living hostages in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners under the first phase of the ceasefire agreement.
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The deal, announced last week by US President Donald Trump, was brokered by the US, Türkiye, Egypt, and Qatar. It includes a phased plan to end hostilities, exchange prisoners, and gradually withdraw Israeli forces from Gaza. The second phase is expected to establish a new governing authority in Gaza, form a multinational peacekeeping force, and oversee the disarmament of Hamas.
Since October 2023, Israeli attacks have killed over 67,900 Palestinians, most of them women and children, leaving much of Gaza in ruins and uninhabitable.[]
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
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