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Israel has received two bodies, which Hamas says are two more deceased hostages held in Gaza.
The Israeli military said two coffins were handed over to troops in the Palestinian Territory by the Red Cross, which had previously received them from Hamas.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the coffins, which were escorted by the military, had crossed into Israel and would be taken to Tel Aviv for official identification.
Confirming their identities would mean Hamas has handed over 15 of the 28 dead Israeli hostages under the first phase of a US-brokered ceasefire deal earlier this month. All 20 living hostages were released shortly after the agreement was reached.
Hamas has surrendered a Palestinian body in previous hostage transfers, which it says was accidental due to difficulties in locating the bodies.
The IDF urged the Israeli public on Tuesday evening to “act with sensitivity and wait for official identification, which will first be provided to the families of the hostages.”
It further emphasized that “Hamas is required to abide by the agreement and take the necessary steps to return all deceased hostages.”
Israeli officials said the families of the hostages would be notified once the bodies were identified.
There was outrage in Israel that Hamas had not yet returned all the dead hostages.
The Palestinian group says it is trying to do so, but is facing difficulties finding bodies under the rubble of buildings bombed by IS in Gaza.
Under the ceasefire and hostage release agreement, Israel released 250 Palestinian prisoners and 1,718 Gaza detainees and returned 15 Palestinian bodies for every remains of an Israeli hostage.
The first phase of the deal also saw an increase in aid to Gaza, a partial withdrawal of Israeli forces and a halt to fighting – although deadly violence erupted over the weekend as both sides accused each other of violating the terms of the deal.
IS launched a military campaign in Gaza in response to the October 7, 2023 attack in which Hamas-led gunmen killed around 1,200 people in southern Israel and took 251 others hostage.
More than 68,000 people have been killed by Israeli attacks in Gaza since then, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, whose figures are considered reliable by the United Nations.
