KHAN YUNIS: Israel on Wednesday returned the bodies of 45 Palestinians to Gaza authorities, the enclave’s Hamas-run Health Ministry said, bringing the total number of bodies handed over under a US-brokered ceasefire agreement to 90.
In the southern Gaza city of Khan Yunis, AFP correspondents saw morgue workers unloading bodies from refrigerated trucks parked beside Red Cross vehicles.
The exchange is part of a ceasefire deal mediated by US President Donald Trump to end the two-year Gaza conflict. Under the arrangement, Israel agreed to return the bodies of 15 Palestinians for each deceased Israeli handed over by Hamas.
On Monday, Hamas returned the bodies of three Israelis and one Nepalese national. A day later, it handed over three more deceased Israelis and one unidentified body, which the Israeli military said did not match anyone listed among the dead hostages.
The ceasefire deal also led to the release of the last 20 surviving hostages from Gaza in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners freed from Israeli jails, alongside a complete halt in fighting and bombardment.
However, the remains of 20 other hostages are still believed to be in Gaza, with growing domestic pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to link humanitarian aid to their recovery.
Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir has warned of cutting off supplies to Gaza if Hamas fails to return the bodies of Israeli soldiers still held in the enclave.
Meanwhile, the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt remained closed on Wednesday despite reports that it could reopen to allow aid convoys, as Israel continues to demand the return of the remaining hostages’ bodies.