Massive destruction across Gaza has made it nearly impossible for Hamas to find and recover the bodies of remaining Israeli hostages buried under debris. On Saturday, an Egyptian convoy carrying excavators and bulldozers entered Gaza to assist in the recovery operations.
Under the U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement, Israel must return 15 Palestinian bodies for every Israeli hostage body recovered. So far, Israel has returned 195 Palestinian bodies, while Hamas has returned 18 Israeli bodies. Earlier this month, Hamas released all 20 living Israeli hostages.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he is “watching very closely” to ensure all bodies are returned within 48 hours. “Some of the bodies are hard to reach, but others they can return now,” he wrote on Truth Social.
Hamas Expands Search Amid Widespread Destruction
In the past five days, Hamas has not recovered any additional bodies due to extensive destruction across the enclave. A senior Hamas negotiator told Egyptian media that many bodies remain buried deep underground and require specialized machinery to retrieve.
On Sunday, Hamas expanded its search to new areas of Gaza to locate the remaining 13 Israeli bodies, according to Khalil al-Hayya, the group’s Gaza leader. The ongoing devastation continues to slow recovery efforts despite the assistance provided by Egypt’s convoy.
Last week, a Turkish convoy entered Gaza to clear debris in Khan Younis, removing rubble caused by Israeli airstrikes. The local municipality estimates that around 800 tonnes of debris now cover the city’s streets.
Israel Launches New Strike on Gaza Refugee Camp
Israeli forces struck the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza on Saturday night, injuring at least four people, officials at Awda Hospital reported. The attack marked the second strike on the camp within a week.
The Israeli military said it targeted militants from the Islamic Jihad group allegedly planning to attack Israeli troops, though the group denied preparing any such operation. Hamas condemned the strike as a “blatant violation” of the ceasefire and accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of attempting to undermine the peace agreement.
Netanyahu defended the attack at his weekly Cabinet meeting on Sunday, saying, “We thwart dangers before they are carried out, as we did yesterday in the Gaza Strip.”
