By WAFAA SHURAFA and JULIA FRANKEL, Associated Press
DEIR AL-BALAH (AP) — Israel on Monday handed over the bodies of 45 Palestinians, health officials in Gaza said, a day after Hamas returned the remains of three hostages. Israeli officials identified the three as soldiers who were killed in the Hamas-led terrorist attack on Oct. 7, 2023 that triggered the war.
The exchange marked another step forward for the tenuous, U.S.-brokered ceasefire in the two-year war — the deadliest and most destructive war ever fought between Israel and militant Hamas group.
Since the truce took effect on Oct. 10, Palestinian militants have released the remains of 20 hostages, with eight now still remaining in Gaza.
For each hostage returned, Israel has been releasing the remains of 15 Palestinians. Monday’s return brought the number of Palestinian bodies handed back since the ceasefire began to 270.
Slow identification process in Gaza
Zaher al-Wahidi, a spokesperson at the Gaza Health Ministry, told The Associated Press that the 45 released bodies of Palestinians were received at the Nasser Hospital in Gaza around noon.
Only about 75 of all the returned bodies have so far been identified, the ministry said. Forensic work is complicated by a lack of DNA testing kits in Gaza, it added. The ministry posts photos of the remains online, in the hope that families will recognize them.
Meanwhile, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu identified the three hostages returned to Israel on Sunday night as Capt. Omer Neutra, an American-Israeli, Staff Sgt. Oz Daniel and Col. Assaf Hamami. A Hamas statement earlier said their remains were found on Sunday in a tunnel in southern Gaza.
Neutra, an American-Israeli, was 21 when Hamas abducted him and the rest of his tank crew on Oct. 7, 2023. In December 2024, the military announced Neutra had been killed in the attack that started the war.
U.S. President Donald Trump said Sunday he had spoken with Neutra’s family, describing their relief and heartbreak. “They were thrilled, in one sense, but in another sense, obviously, it’s not too great,” Trump said.
Daniel, a 19-year-old staff sergeant, was pulled from his tank and taken into Gaza, along with three others of his crew. He is survived by his parents and twin sister. The remains of the others were returned earlier.
Hamami, commander of Israel’s southern brigade in the Gaza division, died early on Oct. 7, 2023, in fighting to defend Kibbutz Nirim. Hamami and two of his soldiers were killed and their bodies were taken to Gaza. Hamami is survived by his wife and three children.
Militants have released one or two bodies every few days. Israel has urged for faster progress, and in certain cases it has said the remains were not those of any hostage. Hamas has said the work is complicated by widespread devastation.
Arrests of 2 ex-military figures rocks Israel
Since Sunday, a political scandal has rocked Israel involving the military’s former legal chief, Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi. A military official said she was arrested overnight after she has admitted to leaking a video of Israeli soldiers sexually assaulting a Palestinian detainee and resigned from office.
The arrests were widely reported in Israeli media. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because of not being authorized to speak with the media.
A frantic search was underway Sunday along the Tel Aviv beach for Tomer-Yerushalmi, after her family raised concerns for her safety and police found her abandoned car along the coastline, reported Israel’s Channel 12. Police said she was found soon after the search began.
Former chief military prosecutor Col. Matan Solomesh was also arrested overnight and was appearing in court Monday, reported Israel’s Army Radio.
Efforts to ramp up Gaza aid and a vaccination campaign
The exchange of hostage remains for Palestinian bodies has been the central part of the initial phase of the U.S.-brokered ceasefire. The 20-point plan includes the formation of an international stabilization force of Arab and other partners that would work with Egypt and Jordan on securing Gaza’s borders and ensure the ceasefire is respected.
Multiple nations have shown interest in taking part in a peacekeeping force but have called for a clear U.N. Security Council mandate before committing troops.
Other difficult questions include Hamas’ disarmament and the governance of a postwar Gaza, as well as when and how humanitarian aid will be increased.
U.K. Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper will visit Jordan on Monday and call on Israel to allow more aid into Gaza. She is expected to visit a warehouse where British aid remains stuck waiting to enter Gaza.
Ahead of the visit, Cooper said that “humanitarian support is desperately needed and the people of Gaza cannot afford to wait.”
“Following the U.S.-led peace process and the plans for a substantial increase in aid for Gaza, we need an increase in crossings, an acceleration in lifting of restrictions and more agencies able to go in with aid,” Cooper said.
Cooper also announced that Britain will provide an extra $7.9 million of humanitarian support for Gaza, provided by the UN Population Fund.
Also Monday, Gaza’s health ministry announced that a campaign to vaccinate some 40,000 Palestinian children under three years old against preventable diseases like measles, polio and meningitis will kick off next week.
It will focus on children who missed routine vaccinations or received only partial doses due to the war, Dr. Nedal Ghoneim, the Health Ministry’s public health manager, told the AP. The exact number of children in need of routine vaccinations is unknown due to challenges record-keeping during the war, said Ghoneim.
The Hamas-led attack on southern Israel two years ago killed about 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage. Israel’s military offensive has killed more than 68,800 Palestinians in Gaza, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants. The ministry, part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals, maintains detailed records viewed as generally reliable by independent experts.
Israel, which has denied accusations by a U.N. commission of inquiry and others of committing genocide in Gaza, has disputed the ministry’s figures without providing a contradicting toll.
Frankel reported from Jerusalem. Associated Press writers Renata Brito in Jerusalem; Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv, Israel; Natalie Melzer in Nahariya, Israel; Jill Lawless in London and Aamer Madhani in West Palm Beach, Florida, contributed to this report.
