Some Transferred Remains Not Identified as Hostages

Under a U.S.-brokered ceasefire, the ICRC/Red Cross has been facilitating transfers of remains between Gaza and Israel as part of a slow, fragile exchange. The Red Cross said it transferred three sets of remains to Israel late Friday, and Israeli forensic examiners concluded those three were not among the hostages still missing; Hamas also handed over the bodies of two hostages identified by Israeli authorities as Sahar Baruch and Amiram Cooper for forensic confirmation. As part of the deal, Israel returned 30 Palestinian bodies to Gaza on Friday, bringing the total Palestinian remains returned since the truce began to about 225, though Gaza health authorities say they lack DNA kits and have identified only a minority. The exchanges are unfolding amid renewed Israeli strikes that Gaza health officials say killed more than 100 people this week, and amid Israeli accusations that Hamas is stalling or staging recoveries while recovery teams and Hamas cite widespread destruction in Gaza as a major impediment to locating bodies. The ICRC reiterated its neutral intermediary role and stressed that parties are responsible for searching for and returning the dead as families and forensic teams continue to await answers about the circumstances of death for returned remains.