CAIRO, October 20. /TASS/. Hamas’ armed wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, has said it will hand over to Red Cross medics the body of one more deceased Israeli hostage.
"As part of the exchange deal (of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners - TASS), the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades will hand over the body of one of the hostages <…> which was retrieved from under the rubble in the Gaza Strip yesterday," it said in a post on its Telegram channel, adding that the transfer will take place at 8:00 p.m. local time (5:00 p.m. GMT).
Israel and Hamas resumed Egypt-, Qatar, the United States, and Turkey-mediated indirect talks on settling the situation in the Gaza Strip on October 6. On October 9, the parties to the conflict signed n agreement on the implementation of phase one of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza ceasefire plan. The ceasefire came into effect on October 10.
On the evening of October 13, Hamas and other Palestinian groups released all the 20 living hostages and handed over the bodies of four deceased hostages under the Gaza ceasefire deal. The hostages were handed over to the Israeli military through the Red Cross and are already in Israel’s territory. In turn, Israel will release 1,968 Palestinian prisoners, including 250 serving life or long sentences. The Israeli side expressed resentment that Hamas has returned only four out of 28 bodies of deceased hostages. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz accused Hamas of failing to implement its commitments under the deal and warned that any delay or deviation from fulfilling obligations will be deemed a gross violation of the Gaza ceasefire agreement and will entail an appropriate response. On October 14, four more coffins were handed over to Israel and the remains of two hostages were returned on October 15.
Overall, Israel has received 13 coffins with the bodies of deceased hostages. Twelve bodies have been identified. Thus, according to the Israeli side, Hamas continues to hold the bodies of 16 hostages.