Israel Returns 15 Palestinian Bodies to Gaza as Ceasefire Exchanges Continue Amid Mutual Accusations

Bodies Returned to Gaza as Fragile Ceasefire Exchanges Proceed

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Gaza’s largest functioning hospital reported Wednesday that Israel returned the bodies of 15 Palestinians, part of the phased exchanges outlined in last month’s U.S.-brokered ceasefire. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has transferred 285 bodies from Israeli custody to Gaza since the agreement was negotiated, officials said.

Gaza health authorities warned that identifying many of the remains is difficult because of a shortage of DNA testing kits. Israel has not disclosed how many bodies it still holds or where they were recovered, but has been returning groups of 15 each time Gaza hands over the remains of an Israeli hostage.

The latest group of 15 arrived at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis a day after Palestinian militants in Gaza handed over the body of Itay Chen, an Israeli soldier killed in the Oct. 7, 2023 attack that ignited the war. Chen’s family described the return as "bittersweet" and called for further investigation into how the Oct. 7 assault was able to occur, according to a statement from Israel’s Hostages and Missing Families Forum.

These exchanges are the central element of the initial phase of the U.S.-brokered deal, which requires Hamas to return all hostage remains as quickly as possible. The process has continued even as both sides accuse the other of violating other terms of the agreement.

Hamas returned 20 living hostages to Israel on Oct. 13 and has since said it handed over the remains of 21 bodies. Israeli officials have criticized aspects of the transfers, alleging that some returns included partial remains or staged discoveries; in some instances Israel has disputed that the remains were those of hostages and has sought to accelerate the process.

Hamas has said recovery efforts are hampered by extensive destruction across the coastal enclave and has been returning one to three bodies every few days. It has also accused Israel of firing on civilians and restricting humanitarian aid. Gaza’s health authorities — who typically do not distinguish between civilians and fighters in their casualty counts — continue to report deaths from strikes, while Israel reports combatant fatalities among its forces.

The deal will not proceed to subsequent phases until all Israeli hostage remains are returned. Later steps in the 20-point plan include forming an international stabilization force; diplomats are still negotiating its composition, role and which countries — particularly in the Arab world — might participate.

“What we believe is that whatever entity that is created in Gaza should have the legitimacy of a mandate from the Security Council,” U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres said in Doha.

The fragile accord aims to wind down the war that began with the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel, which killed roughly 1,200 people and resulted in about 251 people taken hostage. Israel’s subsequent military campaign has, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, killed more than 68,800 Palestinians in Gaza; that ministry is run by the Hamas-led administration and its figures are disputed by Israeli authorities and others. Israel has rejected accusations by a U.N. commission of inquiry and other bodies that it committed genocide but has not provided an alternative consolidated casualty toll.

Reporting from Rabat, Morocco, contributed to this dispatch.