UPDATE 3 - Hamas hands over bodies of 4 Israeli captives under Gaza ceasefire deal

ADDS DETAILS; CHANGES DECK

By Zein Khalil and Rania Abu Shamala

JERUSALEM (AA) – The Palestinian resistance group Hamas handed over the bodies of four Israeli captives late Wednesday under a Gaza ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement.

The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office announced early Thursday that it had received coffins containing the bodies of four hostages handed over by Hamas to the Red Cross.

It added in the statement that a preliminary identification process has begun to confirm their identities.

Earlier, Israel’s Channel 7 reported that the Red Cross handed over the bodies to the Israeli army at the Karem Abu Salem crossing, marking the final batch of the prisoner exchange deal under the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement.

Hamas handed over the bodies to the Red Cross in Gaza, the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper reported late Wednesday, citing an unnamed Israeli security source.

An Israeli forensic team arrived at the Kerem Shalom border crossing with Gaza in preparation for receiving the bodies and conducting a preliminary identification.

Israel’s public broadcasting authority reported that Chen Kugel, director of the Israeli Forensic Institute, was present at the Kerem Shalom crossing to receive the bodies.

"Members of the forensic institute and the police forensic evidence team are preparing to assist in the preliminary identification of the bodies as they are transferred to the Kerem Shalom crossing,” it added.

In exchange, a bus carrying dozens of Palestinian prisoners arrived at the Cultural Palace in Ramallah, where their families were waiting, according to an Anadolu correspondent.

The correspondent added that the bus was accompanied by teams from the International Red Cross.

The release is part of the delayed seventh batch of the prisoner exchange deal between Hamas and Israel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office confirmed Wednesday that the four bodies will be returned tonight “without Hamas ceremonies.”

The first phase of the Gaza agreement took effect on Jan. 19, pausing the Israeli war, which has killed more than 48,300 people, mostly women and children, and left the enclave in ruins.

So far, 25 Israeli hostages and eight bodies have been released from Gaza in return for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners under the first phase of the ceasefire deal.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.