Egyptian authorities along with Red Cross Participate in Search for Captive Bodies in Gaza
Units from Egypt and the ICRC have been authorized to search for the remains of deceased hostages taken during the October 7th incidents, Israeli authorities have confirmed.
The Israeli government announced that the teams have been permitted to search past the so-called "demarcation line" in the area under the control of Israeli forces in the Gaza territory.
The group has handed over 15 out of 28 deceased Israeli hostages under the first phase of a US-brokered truce agreement, which requires it to transfer all remains of captives. The group said it is now coordinating with Egyptian authorities.
Donald Trump has cautions the organization to begin returning the remains "quickly, or the other countries participating in this significant peace will intervene".
An Israeli spokesperson said the Egyptian team has been authorized to collaborate with the ICRC to locate the remains, and would use excavator machines and vehicles for the search past the "demarcation line".
The "demarcation line" indicates the border running along the northern, south and eastern of Gaza that Israel withdrew to, as part of the initial phase of the ceasefire deal.
Until now, Israeli authorities has not authorized the access of these crews.
The Egyptian government, along with Qatar and Turkish authorities, is a principal participant of the Trump-brokered Gaza peace plan, which was ratified in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh in recent weeks.
The development will be welcomed by family members, eager to provide a proper burial.
The International Committee of the Red Cross has already been heavily involved in the return of hostages.
The organization does not hand over its captives - living or deceased - straight to the IDF, but instead to the ICRC, which in turn accompanies them through the territory and transfers them to the IDF.
But the entry of Egyptian excavation teams inside the Gaza Strip is new.
After more than two years of heavy shelling by Israel, the UN calculates that as much as 84% of the area has been destroyed completely.
Hamas says it is making every effort to recover remains of captives, but it faces difficulty finding them under rubble of structures bombed out by the IDF in the region.
It is now working in coordination with the officials in Egypt.
On the weekend, an official representative stated that Hamas knew where the bodies were.
"If the group put in greater work, they would be able to recover the bodies of our hostages," the spokesperson said.
Trump shared on his Truth Social platform on the weekend that measures would be implemented if the bodies of the hostages who died were not returned promptly.
"A portion of the bodies are hard to reach, but others they can return at present and, for some reason, they are not. Perhaps it has do with their disarming," he remarked.
He added: "Let's see what they do over the coming two days. I am watching this with great attention."
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- Recent photographs show demarcation zone deeper into Gaza than expected
On the weekend, the Israeli leader said Israel would decide which international troops it would allow as part of a proposed multinational contingent in the region to help secure the ceasefire under the former president's initiative.
"We are in control of our safety, and we have also stated explicitly regarding foreign troops that Israel will determine which units are unacceptable to us, and this is how we operate and will continue to operate," he said talking at the start of a government session.
On the end of the week, the American diplomat indicated "numerous countries" had volunteered to be part of the contingent - but added Israel would have to be satisfied with those taking part.
This seemed like a reference to the Turkish government, amid accounts Israel had vetoed the country's involvement.
It was still uncertain, however, how such a force could be stationed without an agreement with Hamas.
Israel initiated a military campaign in the territory in following the incidents of October 7th, in which militants associated with the group took the lives of about 1,200 people and captured 251 others as captives.
No fewer than 68,519 have been killed in military actions in Gaza since then, according to the territory's health authorities under the group's control.