Red Cross Assists Hamas in Search for Bodies of Israeli Hostages in Gaza Strip

A Red Cross official confirmed that its representatives accompanied members of Hamas into areas of the Gaza Strip still under IDF authority to support the hunt for the remains of Israeli hostages.

Ceasefire Agreements and Captive Bodies Return

As part of the US-brokered ceasefire, which took effect on 10 October, Hamas is required to hand over the bodies of all Israeli hostages promptly. As a reciprocal measure, Israel has agreed to transfer the remains of 15 Palestinians for every Israeli body returned.

The organization has so far handed back the bodies of fifteen of those taken hostage but none in the last five days, as some of those remains are believed to be in areas past the yellow line designating Gaza’s ceasefire.

ICRC Involvement as Neutral Intermediary

“At the request of the involved sides, the Red Cross joined a participant in the hostilities as the party looked for the remains of the deceased individuals past the IDF-designated ‘yellow boundary’,” said a representative for the organization.

She added: “The parties to the hostilities determined the procedures of the mission and delegated the ICRC to act as a neutral intermediary. The ICRC was not involved in the discussions.”

The official additionally explained: “The ICRC was not involved in the physical hunt for the bodies nor does it engage in the physical recovery of human remains.”

Global Humanitarian Law and Duties

Under international humanitarian law, it is the responsibility of the parties involved in a hostilities to locate, collect, and retrieve the bodies of the deceased.

US Ultimatum and Local Search Efforts

Recently, the US president issued a two-day ultimatum to the organization. “Hamas is going to have to begin returning the remains of the deceased hostages, which include two Americans, promptly, or the other countries involved in this significant truce will intervene,” he posted on his online channel.

As the two-day window neared, Hamas, accompanied by the Red Cross, teamed up with teams from Egypt, who were granted permission by Israel to look for remains beyond the boundary indicating the withdrawal of troops inside the territory. An official representative said the delegation would use excavator machines and trucks in the operation.

Official Confirmation and Press Coverage

This development was supported by an unnamed Israeli official, who told Hebrew-language media that Hamas representatives had been allowed to enter areas of Gaza under military authority to search for the remains of hostages, alongside Egyptian and ICRC personnel.

“To achieve this goal, Hamas members were permitted to cross the yellow line,” the official was cited as stating.

Video published by a media outlet appeared to show individuals of a Hamas unit – part of the organization’s military wing responsible for guarding hostages – escorting a Red Cross vehicle in a coastal area close to Rafah, which lies outside IDF jurisdiction.

Difficulties in Finding Hostage Bodies

The search for the bodies of Israeli hostages has become one of the most sensitive issues in the truce agreed between the two sides. Yet, the effort to locate the bodies has proved difficult from the outset, given the presence of an approximate 60m tonnes of debris across the territory, where, according to local health authorities, at least 10,000 Palestinians are listed as unaccounted for, trapped under the debris.

Conflicting Claims on Remains Location

The group has stated it does not know the precise whereabouts of all the remains, saying it has been unable to communicate with several of its teams that had been holding the hostages and were allegedly killed during Israeli bombardments.

However, an official representative asserted that the organization knew the locations of the bodies. “If Hamas exerted greater effort, they would be able to retrieve the remains of our hostages,” the official said.

American Stance and Weapons Surrender Discussions

Although the American leader has conceded that some of the bodies are difficult to reach, he said that “others they can return now and, for unknown reasons, they are not.”

“It may have to do with the surrender of weapons of the group,” he added.

The US administration has said it has received assurances from Hamas that the group will disarm, though no clear timeline has been established. The militant organisation remains hesitant to surrender its weapons without firm guarantees about the fate of its members.