Egyptian authorities along with Red Cross Join Search for Captive Bodies in Gaza Strip
Teams from Egypt and the International Committee of the Red Cross have been granted permission to search for the bodies of hostages who perished captured during the 7 October attacks, Israeli authorities have confirmed.
The Israeli government stated that the teams have been permitted to operate beyond the so-called "demarcation line" in the area under the control of Israeli forces in Gaza.
The group has handed over 15 out of 28 deceased Israeli hostages under the initial stage of a American-mediated truce agreement, which requires it to transfer all hostage bodies. The group said it is now coordinating with officials in Egypt.
The former US president has warned the organization to begin returning the remains "promptly, or the additional nations involved in this great peace will intervene".
An Israeli spokesperson indicated the crew from Egypt has been authorized to collaborate with the Red Cross to find the remains, and would use digging equipment and vehicles for the operation beyond the "demarcation line".
The "demarcation line" marks the border running along the north, south and east of the Gaza territory that Israeli forces pulled back to, as part of the initial phase of the truce agreement.
Until now, Israeli authorities has not approved the access of such teams.
Egypt, along with Qatari officials and Turkey, is a key signatory of the Trump-brokered Gaza peace plan, which was ratified in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh earlier this month.
The news will be welcomed by family members, eager to give them a dignified funeral.
The International Committee of the Red Cross has already been deeply engaged in the return of captives.
The organization does not transfer its detainees - living or deceased - straight to the IDF, but instead to the Red Cross, which in turn escorts them through Gaza and transfers them to the IDF.
But the arrival of digging crews from Egypt inside the Gaza territory is a recent development.
After more than two years of intense bombardment by Israeli forces, the United Nations estimates that as much as eighty-four percent of the area has been destroyed completely.
Hamas says it is doing its best to retrieve hostage bodies, but it faces difficulty locating them under rubble of buildings destroyed by the IDF in Gaza.
It is now working in coordination with the officials in Egypt.
On Sunday, an Israeli government spokesperson stated that the organization knew where the bodies were.
"If the group made more of an effort, they would be able to retrieve the bodies of our captives," the representative commented.
Trump shared on his Truth Social platform on the weekend that action would be implemented if the remains of the hostages who died were not returned promptly.
"A portion of the remains are hard to reach, but the rest they can return at present and, for unknown reasons, they are not. Perhaps it has to do with their demilitarization," he remarked.
Trump continued: "We will observe what they accomplish over the coming two days. I am watching this with great attention."
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On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Israel would decide which international troops it would permit as part of a proposed international force in Gaza to help maintain the ceasefire under the former president's initiative.
"We are in control of our security, and we have also stated explicitly regarding international forces that Israel will determine which forces are not acceptable to us, and this is how we operate and will continue to operate," he declared talking at the beginning of a government session.
On Friday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said "numerous nations" had volunteered to be involved in the contingent - but added Israeli authorities would have to be satisfied with participants.
This seemed like a reference to the Turkish government, amid accounts Israeli officials had rejected the nation's participation.
It remained unclear, however, how this contingent could be stationed without an understanding with the organization.
Israel initiated a military campaign in Gaza in response to the incidents of October 7th, in which Hamas-led gunmen took the lives of about 1,200 people and took two hundred fifty-one others as captives.
At least 68,519 have been killed in Israeli attacks in the region from that time, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.