Israel has received “findings” from the Gaza Strip, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said on Tuesday.
The Palestinian militant group Hamas said earlier that it had transferred the remains of one of the last two hostages’ bodies still held in Gaza to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
Netanyahu’s office said the “findings” were delivered to the Israeli military in the Gaza Strip and received in the presence of a military rabbi. They were then due to be taken to an Israeli forensic centre.
The statement said the Israeli government is in constant contact with the families of the two killed hostages, which include a Thai national who was abducted from Israel during the attacks by Hamas and other militant groups on October 7, 2023.
Efforts to repatriate their bodies are continuing and will only end once the last remains have been handed over, the office added.
Israel and Hamas agreed to the handover of bodies as part of a ceasefire deal in October. According to the agreement, Israel must hand over the remains of 15 deceased Gazans for every Israeli hostage whose remains are returned.
Under the terms of the ceasefire, Hamas released the remaining 20 surviving hostages on October 13 in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.
However, the handover of the killed hostages has been slow, taking more than seven weeks.
