Gaza: The health ministry in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip announced that Israel has returned the bodies of 15 Palestinian prisoners as part of a US-brokered ceasefire exchange deal.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the Ministry of Health in Gaza confirmed the receipt of 15 bodies, which were handed over via the International Committee of the Red Cross. This brings the total number of bodies received since the ceasefire to 345. The exchange is part of an agreement that came into effect on October 10, which stipulates that Israel return the bodies of 15 Palestinians for every Israeli deceased returned.
A medical source at Gaza's Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis confirmed the arrival of the bodies through the Red Cross. The latest exchange involved the remains of Dror Or, one of the last three deceased hostages held in Gaza, whose body was returned to Israel on Tuesday.
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem stated that the handover is a testament to Hamas's commitment to complete the exchange process, despite facing significant challenges. The remains of the last two hostages, Israeli Ran Gvili and Thai national Sudthisak Rinthalak, are still in Gaza.
Initially, militants held 20 living hostages and 28 deceased captives at the start of the ceasefire. Since then, Hamas has released all living hostages and returned the remains of 26 deceased individuals. In return, Israel has released nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and returned the bodies of hundreds of deceased Palestinians.