US President Donald Trump declared on Tuesday that “phase two” of the ceasefire deal between Gaza and Israel “begins right NOW,” while emphasising that “the job is not done” until the bodies of all deceased hostages are returned. Writing on Truth Social, Trump said: “A big burden has been lifted, but the job IS NOT DONE. THE DEAD HAVE NOT BEEN RETURNED, AS PROMISED!” He added that phase two is now commencing, even though the return of the deceased is officially part of phase one of the ceasefire agreement. So far, Hamas has released 20 living Israeli hostages and 1,700 Palestinian detainees, but the remains of 24 dead hostages have not yet been handed over. Of these, only four bodies have been returned to Israel. Early tensions were widely anticipated as Hamas and Israel navigate the implementation of the 20-point ceasefire plan proposed by Trump. The plan also stipulated that “all hostages, alive and deceased” be returned within 72 hours of the agreement, with provisions for delays. Hamas is required to provide information on any remaining deceased hostages and “exert maximum effort to ensure the fulfilment of these commitments as soon as possible.” The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) warned on Tuesday that delays could be expected, calling the handover of all hostages’ remains a “massive challenge” due to the difficulty of locating bodies amid rubble. Christian Cardon, an ICRC official, told reporters in Geneva, “The search for human remains is obviously an even bigger challenge than having the people alive being released.” Yellow line Despite celebrations on Monday marking early successes of the ceasefire, violence flared again throughout Gaza. Israeli forces, which had withdrawn from Gaza City and other areas to a designated “yellow line,” reportedly opened fire on civilians approaching their positions in two separate incidents, killing six people. Mahmud Bassal, spokesperson for Gaza’s civil defence agency, said five were killed by drone strikes while inspecting homes in Shujaiya, and another died southeast of Khan Younis. The Israeli military stated that its forces had issued repeated warnings to the individuals, whom they identified as threats, before opening fire near one location and a former Hamas arms cache in another. Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem condemned the shootings, claiming Israel was violating ceasefire terms and attempting to “evade its commitments to the mediators.”
