Khan Younis/Gaza, October 15, 2025: The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said on Tuesday that the remains of 45 Palestinians who had been killed and were being held in Israel were returned to Gaza — one day after Hamas handed over all 20 living Israeli hostages, officials in Gaza said.
Dr Mohammed Zaqout, director-general of field hospitals for Gaza’s health authorities, told local and international journalists that a specialist team has been formed to examine and identify the 45 bodies. Gaza health officials are awaiting details and names from Israeli authorities so they can complete formal identifications.
“If we receive names from the Israelis we will publish them,” Dr Zaqout said. “If not, we will create an online link and post all the photographs so families can come to the Nasser Medical Complex field hospital, identify their relatives, collect the bodies and perform last rites with dignity.” He added that Israel had also promised more remains would be returned in the coming days, provided the handover process continues smoothly.
Outside the Nasser hospital in Khan Younis, Rasmiya Muhammad Khalil Qudaih waited for news of her son, who she says has been missing since the fighting began between Hamas and Israel. “I do not know whether he was taken captive or killed,” she told a BBC correspondent. She said repeated enquiries have produced conflicting answers and that she has received no firm information about her son’s fate.
Before the ceasefire, 48 Israeli hostages were believed held in Gaza; Israeli authorities say 28 of them are thought to have been killed. Hamas on Monday released all 20 remaining living hostages and has been gradually handing over the bodies of those it says were killed during the fighting. Israeli officials confirmed the identities of several returned bodies, though the Israeli military said one of the corpses handed over on Tuesday did not match any missing hostage after forensic examination.
Under a U.S.-brokered ceasefire arrangement, the mutual exchanges have also seen Israel release Palestinian prisoners while humanitarian access into Gaza has been partially restored. Aid groups and residents in Gaza report that while food supplies have become more available, basic services such as water and electricity remain largely absent and many families are cautious about buying supplies amid uncertainty over how long the truce will hold.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said earlier he remained hopeful about the next phase of the ceasefire process but warned that if Hamas did not disarm the group would face severe consequences. Meanwhile, international mediators continue to work to ensure the safe and orderly return of remaining hostages and the proper identification and handover of the deceased.
