Israel returns bodies of 15 Palestinians to Gaza

Deir Al-Balah: Officials at Gaza’s largest functioning hospital said Wednesday that the bodies of 15 more Palestinians were returned from Israel, as exchanges outlined in last month’s fragile ceasefire continued despite allegations of violations.

The International Committee of the Red Cross has transported 285 bodies held in Israeli custody to Gaza since last month’s agreement was brokered, though health officials in Gaza have said identifying the remains is complicated by a lack of DNA testing kits.

Israel has not disclosed how many bodies it is holding or where they were recovered, but has been returning 15 each time the remains of an Israeli hostage are returned from Gaza.

The 15 were returned to Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis on Wednesday, a day after Palestinian militants in Gaza handed over the body of an Israeli soldier taken hostage in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that started the war.

The exchanges are the central component of the initial phase of the US-brokered agreement, which requires Hamas to return all hostages remains as quickly as possible. The exchanges have gone ahead even as Israel and Hamas have accused

each other of breaching other terms of the deal.