Netanyahu ‘determined’ to pressure Hamas to find remaining dead hostages
At a memorial ceremony for the victims of the Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, Israel’s prime minister said he was “determined” to ensure the return of dead hostages still in Gaza and that the country would continue to fight terrorism “with full force.”
Benjamin Netanyahu made the comments hours after Hamas returned the bodies of two other hostages but said he could not access the remaining 19.
There was outrage in Israel that the US did not return all the bodies of Hamas in accordance with the ceasefire agreement reached in Gaza last week. downplayed suggestion that it amounted to a violation.
Israel responded to the delay by threatening to restrict the amount of aid flowing into Gaza.
Earlier on Thursday, the Israeli government confirmed the identity of two bodies handed over by Hamas to the International Committee of the Red Cross on Wednesday night as Inbar Hayman and Sergeant Major Mohammed al-Atarash.
Their repatriation, supervised by masked Hamas gunmen in Gaza City, brought the number of dead hostages brought back since Monday to nine from 28.
All 20 living hostages were released on Monday in exchange for 250 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons and 1,718 detainees from Gaza.
Hamas’s military wing said on Wednesday it would continue to search for the remaining bodies, but it would require great effort and specialist equipment.
On Thursday, Netanyahu spoke at an official memorial service at Mount Herzl national cemetery in Jerusalem, two days after the Hebrew calendar anniversary of the Oct. 7 attack.
The prime minister said he was determined to ensure the return of all deceased Israeli and foreign hostages and reiterated his government’s willingness to return to military action if Israel was attacked again.
“Our fight against terrorism will continue with all our strength. We will not allow evil to raise its head. We will pay the price for everyone who harms us.”
The Israeli military launched an operation in Gaza in response to an October 7 attack in southern Israel in which Hamas-led gunmen killed nearly 1,200 people and took 251 hostage.
At least 67,967 people have since been killed in Israeli offensives in Gaza, according to the region’s health ministry, whose figures are considered reliable by the UN.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum in Israel said Netanyahu’s government should “immediately halt implementation” of the ceasefire agreement until the 19 bodies are returned.
After Hamas announced that it could not retrieve all the bodies, two senior advisors of US President Donald Trump said that preparations were continuing to move on to the next phase of the ceasefire agreement.
The U.S. government so far does not believe Hamas is violating the agreement by not taking more remains, and the group is acting in good faith by sharing information with its counterparts, advisers told reporters.
The full text of the agreement between Israel and Hamas has not been made public. Leaked version in Israeli media It seemed to allow for the possibility that not all of the bodies could be recovered immediately.
A senior US adviser pointed to the level of destruction in Gaza as a reason for slowing the search and said rewards could be offered to civilians for information on the location of the remains.
Hamas has complained to mediators that more than 20 people have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza since the ceasefire came into force on Friday.
The Israeli army, which currently controls more than half of the region, said it opened fire to eliminate threats to its soldiers.
Meanwhile, work continues in Gaza Identify the bodies of Palestinians extradited by Israel in exchange for the bodies of hostages in recent days. An additional 30 people were extradited on Thursday, bringing the total to 120.
There were some reports that the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, which has been closed since the Gaza side was captured by Israeli forces in May 2024, would reopen on Thursday.
The ceasefire agreement states that reopening will be “subject to the mechanism implemented” during a temporary ceasefire earlier this year, during which wounded Palestinians were briefly allowed through to receive medical treatment.
On Thursday, an official from the Israeli military agency Cogat said: “The date when the Rafah gate will be opened only for the movement of people will be announced at a later stage, after the Israeli side, together with the Egyptian side, completes the necessary preparations.”
The official also emphasized that “the aid will not pass through the Rafah gate.” Instead, they said, Israel would continue to enter Gaza through the nearby Kerem Shalom crossing and other crossings in southern Israel following security checks.
