Israel said it had found the body of a captive Gaza through the International Committee of the Red Cross and added that it would allow Palestinians to cross the border with Egypt – but not return.
The announcements followed statements by Hamas and the armed wings of Palestinian Islamic Jihad that they would hand over the bodies at 5pm (15:00 GMT) on Wednesday after they were found in northern Gaza.
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“The coffin will then be transferred to Israel, to the Ministry of Health’s National Center of Forensic Medicine. After the identification process is completed and according to the findings, a formal notification will be given to the family,” the Israeli military said. Post on x.
This comes a day after Israel said the remains previously handed over by Hamas were not linked to any bodies still held in the Gaza Strip.
The handover of the remains is part of a United States-brokered plan aimed at ending it Israel’s genocidal war On the Palestinians in Gaza. A fragile truce continues despite continued Israeli killings across the enclave.
Under the terms of the cease-fire, the long-closed Rafah crossing will be opened for medical evacuation and travel to and from Gaza. The World Health Organization says there are more than 16,500 sick and injured people who need to leave Gaza for medical care.
However, it was not immediately clear when the border crossing would be opened due to Israel’s dispute with Egypt.
Israel maintains that Palestinians will not be able to return to Gaza through the crossing until the last blockaded remnants are returned from Gaza. Egypt, which controls the other side, said the crossing would only open if there was movement on both sides.
Twenty living hijackers and the remains of 26 others have been returned to Israel since the ceasefire began in early October. The two bodies still in Gaza are those of Israeli police officer Ran Gavili and Thai national Sudthisak Rinthalak, a farm worker.
Israel’s statement has sparked fears of permanent displacement of Palestinians, who are among the far-right ministers in the hardline government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Has been promoted for months.
‘Israeli tactics’
Egypt’s State Information Service, citing an unnamed official, denied the claim, saying Cairo had not agreed to any plan to open the crossing to outbound traffic only.
Any deal with Israel would require opening Rafah in both directions in line with the current ceasefire plan, the official said. The source denied coordinating with Israel on the reopening.
Egypt’s former assistant foreign minister Hussein Haredi said Egypt was “committed to UN Security Council Resolution 2803, which was adopted on October 17 last year, which approved the ceasefire plan”.
All crossings must be opened under the resolution and Egypt is working with the European Union and the Palestinian Authority on operating posts along Rafah when conditions allow, he told Al Jazeera from Cairo.
“We need to operate the Rafah crossing according to (US President Donald) Trump’s peace plan. Since 1948, since the founding of Israel, we have been used to Israeli tactics in implementing cease-fire agreements,” Harridy said.
“Having said that, we will take action against Israel if it does not implement the Security Council resolution.”
Reporting from Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, Al Jazeera’s Noor Odeh said Israel’s announcement represented a pattern of “drip-dropping” its obligations under the ceasefire agreement.
Odeh said Israel intends to maintain a veto on who can leave with medical cases and not allow thousands of Palestinians registered to return to Gaza to do so.
Gaza’s health ministry and government media office said Israeli forces had killed 357 Palestinians in the first 50 days of the ceasefire.
Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 70,117 Palestinians and injured 170,999 since October 2023. On October 7, 2023, a total of 1,139 people were killed and about 200 imprisoned in Israel during attacks led by Hamas.
