Journalism of Courage
Palestinian militants hand over remains of two more hostages to Red Cross in Gaza
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office later confirmed the remains were those of Sahar Baruch and Amiram Cooper, both abducted during Hamas’s 7 October 2023 attack that triggered the war.
Jerusalem,October 31, 2025 07:13 AM IST
First published on: Oct 31, 2025 at 07:13 AM IST
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Red Cross vehicles carrying the bodies of two people believed to be deceased hostages handed over by Hamas make their way toward the Kissufim border crossing with Israel, to be transferred to Israeli authorities, in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip. (AP Photo) Israel’s military said on Thursday that Palestinian militants had handed over the remains of two more hostages, marking another step in the fragile ceasefire process despite Israeli airstrikes on Gaza this week.
According to the Israeli military, the bodies were transferred to the Red Cross in Gaza, brought into Israel by troops, and taken to the National Institute of Forensic Medicine for identification. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office later confirmed the remains were those of Sahar Baruch and Amiram Cooper, both abducted during Hamas’s 7 October 2023 attack that triggered the war.
Hamas has now returned the remains of 17 hostages since the ceasefire began, with 11 more expected to be handed over under the agreement. In exchange, Israel has repatriated the bodies of 195 Palestinians to Gaza authorities, though their identities remain unclear. Health officials in Gaza have said they are struggling to identify the remains due to a lack of DNA testing kits.
Baruch, 25, had been preparing to study electrical engineering when he was kidnapped from Kibbutz Be’eri. His brother, Idan, was killed in the same attack. The Israeli military said Baruch died three months later during an attempted rescue mission. Cooper, 84, was an economist and co-founder of Kibbutz Nir Oz. Captured alongside his wife, Nurit — who was freed after 17 days — Cooper was confirmed dead in Gaza in June 2024.
Strikes in southern Gaza injure dozens
Officials in southern Gaza said at least 40 people were injured in overnight strikes on Khan Younis, despite Israel’s declaration that the ceasefire was back in effect. Mohammad Saar, head of the nursing department at Nasser Hospital, said the facility had received 40 wounded individuals.
The Israeli army said its strikes targeted “terrorist infrastructure that posed a threat to the troops” in the area, which remains under Israeli control. Earlier this week, more than 100 people were killed in Israeli airstrikes that the government described as retaliation for the shooting of an Israeli soldier in Rafah.
Prime Minister Netanyahu accused Hamas of violating the ceasefire by delaying the handover of hostages’ remains. “If Hamas continues to blatantly violate the ceasefire, it will experience powerful strikes, as it did the day before yesterday and yesterday,” he warned during a graduation ceremony for military commanders in southern Israel.
He added that Israel would “act as needed” to remove any “immediate danger” to its forces. “At the end of the day, Hamas will be disarmed and Gaza will be demilitarised. If foreign forces do this, all the better. And if they don’t, we will do it.”
Ceasefire under strain
According to a senior US official, the guarantors of the ceasefire, Egypt and Qatar, have told Hamas that Israel would resume military strikes inside the Israeli-occupied zone of Gaza after a deadline for militants to withdraw expired on Thursday.
In messages passed to Hamas on Wednesday, the mediators reportedly warned that its fighters had 24 hours to leave the “yellow zone” or face Israeli enforcement. After the deadline passed, the official said, “Israel will enforce the ceasefire and engage Hamas targets behind the yellow line.” The official spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the diplomatic exchanges.
The ceasefire, which began on 10 October, aims to wind down what has become the deadliest and most destructive war between Israel and Hamas. The conflict erupted after Hamas-led militants stormed southern Israel on 7 October 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages.
Since then, Israel’s offensive has killed more than 68,600 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which is run by the Hamas-led administration but staffed by medical professionals. The ministry’s figures, generally regarded as credible by independent experts, do not differentiate between civilians and combatants. Israel disputes the toll and has rejected accusations of genocide, but has not provided its own estimates.
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