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Hamas Is deployed bulldozer in Gaza search bar for remains of the dead hostagesa move aimed at reinforcing its uncertainty ceasefire agreement with israelThe militant group confirmed this commitment The terms of the deal also include handing over the bodies.
This action came after a strict warning from the US President donald trumpWho said he would give Israel the green light to resume military operations if Hamas failed to return the bodies of all 28 hostages. So far, Hamas has handed over the remains of nine individuals, with Israel claiming that a tenth body was not that of a hostage.
Hamas blamed Israel for the delay and said the remains of some hostages were in tunnels or buildings destroyed by Israeli forces, requiring heavy machinery to retrieve them. The group also claimed that Israel has not allowed new bulldozers to enter the Gaza Strip, hindering efforts.
Much of Gaza’s heavy equipment was destroyed during the recent conflict, leaving limited resources to clear widespread debris across the region.
On Friday, two bulldozers dug holes in the ground searching for the remains of hostages in the city of Hamad, a complex of apartment towers in the city of Khan Younis. Israeli forces repeatedly bombed the towers during the war, knocking out some, and soldiers conducted a week-long raid there in March 2024 while fighting terrorists.
Hamas urged mediators to increase the flow of aid to Gaza, accelerate the opening of the Rafah border with Egypt, and begin reconstruction. It also called for “immediate commencement” on the establishment of a Committee of Palestinian Free People that would run the Gaza Strip and continue to withdraw Israeli troops from the agreed areas.
The ceasefire plan introduced by Trump called for the handing over of all hostages – living and dead – by a deadline set to expire on Monday. But under the agreement, if that did not happen, Hamas was to share information about the dead hostages and try to hand them over as soon as possible.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that Israel “will not compromise” and demanded that Hamas meet the requirements set out in the ceasefire agreement regarding the return of hostages’ bodies.
Obstacles in retrieving bodies
Hamas has assured the US through mediators that it is working to return the dead hostages. US officials say the recovery of bodies is being hampered by the scope of the destruction as well as the presence of dangerous, unexploded ordnance.
The militant group also told mediators that some bodies were in areas controlled by Israeli troops.
At a press conference with his German counterpart in Ankara, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan expressed concern that Israel could use Hamas’s “lack of equipment” to recover bodies as a pretext for resuming hostilities.
Hamas released all 20 surviving Israeli hostages on Monday. In return, Israel freed approximately 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
In Israel, the Hostage and Missing Families Forum – which groups many of the families of the hostages – said they would continue to hold weekly rallies until all remains are returned.
Israel has also returned the bodies of 90 Palestinians to Gaza for burial. Israel is expected to hand over more bodies, although officials have not said how many are in its custody or how many will be returned.
The Palestinian forensic team examining the remains said some of the bodies showed signs of abuse.
Nearly 68,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s campaign in Gaza, according to the health ministry, which is part of the Hamas-run government in the territory. The ministry maintains detailed casualty records that are generally considered reliable by United Nations agencies and independent experts. Thousands more people are missing, according to the Red Cross.
In the attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, terrorists killed about 1,200 people and took about 250 hostage.
France says international troops in pipeline for Gaza
France said it was working with Britain and the US on presenting a resolution to the UN in the coming days that would provide a framework for an international force for Gaza.
French Foreign Ministry spokesman Pascal Confaveraux told a news conference on Thursday that Arab countries want a UN mandate for the force. Arab countries are expected to be among those contributing to the force, which will oversee Egyptian-trained Palestinian police.
Confaverex said work still needed to be done on funding, equipment and which countries would participate.
Alluding to a potential stabilization force, Türkiye’s Fidan said, “Our goal is to create a buffer zone environment where each side cannot harm the other.”
Gaza continues to wait for massive amounts of aid to be delivered
The UN says aid flows remain disrupted due to the continued closure of crossings and restrictions on aid groups.
A UN dashboard tracking the movement of UN-coordinated aid trucks in Gaza shows that 339 trucks have been unloaded for distribution since the ceasefire began on October 10. Under the ceasefire agreement, 600 aid trucks per day will be allowed to enter Gaza.
COGAT, the Israeli defense agency that oversees humanitarian aid in Gaza, reported the crossing of 950 trucks on Thursday and 716 trucks on Wednesday, said Jens Larke, a spokesman for the UN humanitarian coordination agency. The crossing was closed on Monday and Tuesday for the exchange of hostages and prisoners and for the Jewish holidays.
Larke said COGAT’s data includes commercial trucks and two-way deliveries.
Nahed Scheiber, head of Gaza’s Private Truckers Union, which organizes the pickup of entry aid after Israeli inspections, says improved security in Gaza has helped prevent gangs from looting or intercepting aid convoys – even though there has been no significant increase in supplies since the ceasefire. He said that only 70 trucks went on Thursday.
Gaza’s more than two million people are hoping the ceasefire will bring relief from the humanitarian disaster caused by Israel’s campaign. Throughout the war, Israel restricted aid entry into Gaza, sometimes allowing only small amounts to enter, and completely barred food entry for two months earlier this year to pressure Hamas to free hostages.
Famine was declared in Gaza City, and the United Nations says it has confirmed more than 400 people have died from malnutrition-related causes, including more than 100 children.
Israel says it provided sufficient food and accuses Hamas of stealing most of it. The United Nations and other aid agencies deny this claim.