A fragile two-year ceasefire between Israel and Hamas faced renewed strain Wednesday after the Israeli military (IDF) announced that one of the four bodies handed over by Hamas the previous day was not that of an Israeli hostage held in Gaza.
The revelation follows forensic examinations that concluded the body “does not match any of the hostages.” There was no immediate identification of the body returned.
The handover was part of a U.S.-proposed deal, introduced by President Donald Trump, that mandated the return of all living and deceased hostages. Israel has been awaiting the return of the remains of 28 deceased hostages.
Following the release of 20 living hostages on Monday, Hamas handed over four bodies on Monday and another four on Tuesday, bringing the total bodies released to eight.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly demanded on Wednesday that Hamas meet the deal’s requirements for the return of the remaining deceased hostages. “We will not compromise on this and will not stop our efforts until we return the last deceased hostage, until the last one,” he stated.
This is not the first time a body has been incorrectly identified; during a previous ceasefire, Hamas initially returned the body of a Palestinian woman instead of one of the Bibas family members.
Hamas spokesperson Hazem Kassem claimed the group is working to fulfill the deal but accused Israel of violating the truce with recent shootings in eastern Gaza City and Rafah. Meanwhile, Israel’s defense minister, Israel Katz, warned that the military would target anyone approaching the established deployment lines.
READ: Four More Hostage Remains Returned, But 20 Still Missing As Trump Warns Hamas To Disarm
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