The Israeli military stated on Tuesday that Hamas transferred another coffin containing human remains to the Red Cross, which subsequently delivered the body to Israeli officials.
The Red Cross brought the coffin to Israeli forces positioned in the Gaza Strip, as confirmed by the office of the Israeli Prime Minister. These remains are scheduled for transfer into Israel, where a military rabbi will conduct a ceremony, the Prime Minister’s office further noted.
Following the ceremony, the National Center of Forensic Medicine will carry out an identification process, after which the hostage’s family will be notified.
Earlier, Hamas had declared it found the body of an Israeli soldier, reportedly held captive in Gaza, Reuters reported. Hamas specified the body was discovered in Shejaia, an eastern suburb of Gaza City located within an area still occupied by Israeli forces, after Israel granted access to the site for teams from Hamas and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
This follows the release on Sunday of the bodies of three Israeli hostages, including American citizen Omer Neutra.
Under the terms of the ceasefire, Hamas is expected to hand over the remains of 28 deceased hostages in exchange for the bodies of 360 Palestinian militants who were killed during the Gaza conflict.
Prior to Tuesday, Hamas had released the remains of 20 hostages, with eight still remaining in Gaza.
‘ Yael Kuriel, Reuters alongside