netanyahu Demands Hamas Locate Remains of 19 Hostages as Ceasefire Implementation Faces Delay
GAZA/JERUSALEM – Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is pressing Hamas to locate the bodies of 19 hostages as a condition for fully implementing the current ceasefire agreement, according to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum in Israel. The forum has called for a halt to the deal’s progression untill the remains are returned.
The delay stems from hamas informing mediators it is indeed unable to retrieve all the bodies.Despite this, two senior advisors to US President Donald Trump indicated preparations for the next phase of the ceasefire are continuing. The US government currently assesses that Hamas has acted in good faith by providing details to intermediaries and does not believe the group has broken the agreement.
A leaked version of the Israel-Hamas agreement, published in israeli media, reportedly acknowledges the possibility that not all remains would be immediately recoverable. US advisors cited the extensive destruction in Gaza as a factor perhaps hindering the search, suggesting potential rewards for civilians offering information on the location of the remains.
The situation is further complex by Hamas’s claims that over 20 people have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza sence the ceasefire began on Friday. Israel’s military, maintaining control over more than half of the territory, defends its actions as necessary to eliminate threats to its troops.
Simultaneously occurring, efforts are underway in Gaza to identify the bodies of 120 Palestinians returned by Israel in exchange for hostage remains, with another 30 returned on Thursday.
The reopening of the Rafah crossing with Egypt, closed since May 2024 when it was seized by Israeli forces, remains uncertain. While the ceasefire agreement stipulates its reopening under the same mechanism used during a previous temporary ceasefire for medical evacuations, an Israeli military official from Cogat stated the date will be announced once preparations are complete with Egyptian authorities. The official emphasized that aid will not pass through Rafah, continuing instead through the Kerem Shalom crossing and other points subject to israeli security inspections.
