US military tells Hamas to stop violence against Gaza civilians as Rafah crossing expected to open on Thursday

"The Israeli military has said one of the bodies handed over by Hamas on Tuesday as part of the ceasefire deal is not that of one of the hostages who were held in Gaza. Four bodies were handed over by Hamas on Tuesday evening to ease pressure on the fragile ceasefire, following the first four on Monday - when the last 20 living hostages were released. The military said that "following the completion of examinations at the National Institute of Forensic Medicine, the fourth body handed over to Israel by Hamas does not match any of the hostages."

"Of that second group of four bodies, three were identified, a group that represents many of their families said on Wednesday. The Hostages Family Forum said the three were Uriel Baruch, Tamir Nimrodi and Eitan Levi. Mr Baruch was kidnapped from the Nova music festival during the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7 2023, which triggered the war in Gaza. Mr Nimrodi, who had been serving with the Israeli defence body overseeing humanitarian aid in Gaza, was taken by militants from the Erez border crossing."

"The handover came after an Israeli military agency warned it would slash aid deliveries to Gaza as the militant group was not returning the remains as agreed. By Monday night, Hamas had released four bodies, and four more followed late on Tuesday. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu demanded that Hamas fulfil the requirements laid out in the ceasefire deal - introduced by US President Donald Trump - about the return of the hostages' bodies. "We will not compromise on this and will not stop our efforts until we return the last deceased hostage, until the last one," he said."

Israeli forces reported that one of the bodies handed over by Hamas under the ceasefire deal does not match any of the hostages. Four bodies were handed over on Tuesday to ease pressure on the fragile ceasefire, following four returned on Monday when the last 20 living hostages were released. Of the second group, three were identified as Uriel Baruch, Tamir Nimrodi and Eitan Levi, each linked to kidnappings during the 7 October attack. The handover followed Israeli warnings to reduce aid deliveries, and demands that Hamas fulfill return-of-remains provisions in the ceasefire plan.

Read at Irish Independent