The armed wing of Hamas said it would hand over the body of a hostage at 7pm on Wednesday, while the Israeli military said it had killed two Palestinians who had approached an area it occupied in a “threatening” way.
Gazan health authorities said that Israeli fire had killed a Palestinian collecting firewood. The Israeli military was not able to immediately clarify to Reuters whether the incidents were related.
Despite near daily violence, Israel and Hamas have continued to exchange bodies of the deceased under the terms of the US-brokered ceasefire deal that took effect on October 10th.
Hamas turned over all 20 living hostages held in Gaza in return for nearly 2,000 Palestinian convicts and wartime detainees held in Israel. Hamas also promised to turn over the remains of deceased hostages, but says the devastation in Gaza has made locating bodies difficult. Israel accuses Hamas of stalling.
READ MORE
Hamas has so far returned 21 of the 28 bodies of hostages buried in Gaza. In return, Israel handed over 285 bodies of Palestinians had killed since the war began in October 2023, Gaza health authorities said.
Israel has continued to intermittently strike the Gaza Strip, although the degree of violence has diminished since the ceasefire, allowing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to return to the ruins of their homes and more aid to enter.
Israel has withdrawn troops from positions in cities to behind a yellow demarcation line. The ceasefire was mediated by the United States, and both sides have appealed to Washington to halt violations.- Reuters
