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

A Red Cross official stated that its personnel joined Hamas officials into zones of the Gaza Strip still under IDF control to support the hunt for the remains of Israeli hostages.

Truce Terms and Captive Remains Handover

As part of the truce negotiated by the United States, which began on 10 October, the group is required to hand over the bodies of all captives promptly. In exchange, Israel has consented to hand over 15 Palestinian bodies for every Israeli body returned.

Hamas has so far returned the bodies of fifteen of those taken hostage but zero in the last five days, as some of those remains are believed to be in areas beyond the yellow line designating Gaza’s ceasefire.

ICRC Involvement as Neutral Intermediary

“At the request of the parties, the Red Cross accompanied a participant in the hostilities as the group looked for the remains of the deceased individuals beyond the military-established ‘yellow line’,” stated a spokesperson for the organization.

She continued: “The parties to the hostilities established the modalities of the mission and delegated the ICRC to serve as a neutral intermediary. The ICRC was had no part in those negotiations.”

The official additionally explained: “Our team was not involved in the search for the bodies nor does it take part in the physical recovery of human remains.”

International Humanitarian Law and Duties

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

US Demand and Regional Recovery Operations

On Saturday, the American leader issued a two-day ultimatum to the militant group. “They is going to have to start handing over the remains of the hostages who died, which include American citizens, promptly, or the other countries involved in this significant truce will intervene,” he wrote on his social‑media platform.

When the 48-hour deadline neared, Hamas, joined by the ICRC, teamed up with teams from Egypt, who were authorised by Israeli authorities to look for bodies beyond the line marking the Israeli military’s pullback inside Gaza. An official representative said the delegation would use excavator machines and vehicles in the operation.

Official Confirmation and Media Coverage

This development was corroborated by an source within Israel, who told Hebrew-language media that members of the group had been allowed to access sections of the region under Israel Defense Forces (IDF) control to look for the bodies of hostages, alongside Egyptian and Red Cross personnel.

“For this purpose, representatives were permitted to pass the yellow line,” the source was quoted as saying.

Video published by a regional network appeared to show members of a specialized group – part of the group’s military wing tasked with holding hostages – accompanying a Red Cross vehicle in a coastal area close to Rafah, which is beyond Israeli military control.

Challenges in Finding Captive Bodies

The search for the remains of Israeli hostages has turned into one of the most sensitive issues in the truce agreed between the parties. However, the attempt to locate the bodies has been difficult from the beginning, given the existence of an estimated 60m tonnes of debris across the strip, where, as per local health authorities, at least ten thousand residents are recorded as unaccounted for, buried under the rubble.

Conflicting Statements on Remains Location

The group has claimed it does not know the exact locations of all the bodies, saying it has lost contact with several of its teams that had been detaining the hostages and were allegedly killed during military strikes.

In contrast, an Israeli government spokesperson asserted that the organization was aware of the whereabouts of the remains. “If Hamas exerted greater effort, they would be able to retrieve the remains of our hostages,” the official said.

American Stance and Disarmament Discussions

While the American leader has conceded that some of the remains are hard to reach, he said that “others they can return now and, for unknown reasons, they are failing to do so.”

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

Washington has said it has obtained guarantees from Hamas that the faction will disarm, though no clear timeline has been established. The militant organisation remains hesitant to give up its arms without firm guarantees about the future of its fighters.