The bodies of four Israeli hostages held in Gaza and handed over to the Red Cross by Hamas on Monday have been returned to Israel, the Israeli military confirmed.
According to an army statement, the remains, transported in four coffins, arrived late Monday night at the National Institute for Forensic Medicine in Tel Aviv, where official identification procedures are underway.
The transfer forms part of a broader ceasefire agreement brokered by U.S. President Donald Trump between Israel and Hamas — a deal that also facilitated the release of all 20 surviving Israeli hostages held since October 7, 2023.
In exchange, Israel released 1,968 prisoners and detainees, most of them Palestinians, according to the Israeli Prison Service.
Hamas, in a separate statement, agreed to return the remains of 24 additional deceased hostages as part of the ongoing truce.
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“Hamas is required to uphold the agreement and take the necessary steps to return all the deceased hostages,” the Israeli military said.
The October 2023 attack by Hamas-led militants, which ignited the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip, saw 251 people abducted and taken to Gaza. Many of them including several later confirmed dead were returned during two previous truces over the course of the nearly two-year-long conflict.
Until the latest ceasefire came into effect, Hamas had continued to hold 47 hostages. Among the remains still believed to be in Gaza is that of an Israeli soldier killed in the 2014 conflict.
The latest exchange has been welcomed by international mediators as a critical step toward easing hostilities, though both sides remain wary about the full implementation of the agreement.