Netanyahu fury as Hamas sends ‘additional’ remains of dead hostage already returned in ‘violation of ceasefire’
Israel accused Hamas Following the violation of the fragile ceasefire agreement on Tuesday took “additional remains” of a hostage It was already received in 2023.
Transferred remains Gaza During the night, it was identified as belonging to Ofir Tzarfati, the hostage killed in the Hamas attack on October 7. remains seized by Israeli forces at the beginning of the war.
Hamas Expected to return remains of 13 hostages He is still held in Gaza as part of the ceasefire agreement.
The prime minister’s office, which has come under increasing pressure to return the hostages, said the transfer was a “clear violation” of the agreement.
The office said this Benjamin Netanyahu He will hold a security assessment with defense officials to discuss a response.
Ofir Tzarfati was killed on October 7, 2023, and his remains were recovered by Israeli forces in November (X/@IsraelMFA)
A senior Israeli official said any response must first be given the green light by Washington, which brokered the fragile ceasefire this month that halted two years of war.
Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich and national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir called on Netanyahu to take tough action against Hamas.
The coffin of a deceased hostage has been transferred to Israel, the IDF said late Monday. Red Cross and headed towards Israeli soldiers in Gaza.
Tzarfati’s family claimed that they were shown a video showing Hamas burying his remains in Gaza, and then called on the Red Cross to retrieve them.
They accused Hamas of “deceiving our family while we were trying to recover” and suggested that the “manipulation” was “designed to undermine the agreement and prevent the return of all hostages.”
The statement said, “For the third time, we have to open Ofir’s grave and rebury our son. The so-called circle closed in December 2023, but in fact it never closes. Since that day, we have been living with the wound that constantly opens between memory and longing, between mourning and the sense of mission.”
Israel Army Radio reported that a military drone observed Hamas officers conducting excavations in Gaza on Monday, then removed a body from a nearby building and buried it in a pit.
Hamas allegedly covered the body with soil before calling in the Red Cross to watch its members uncover the body.
The remains were first found at the beginning of the war and then taken back to Israel for burial in March 2024.
Israel has criticized Hamas for the delayed return of hostages’ bodies, which further jeopardized the ceasefire agreement, which was already under pressure due to renewed airstrikes and the blocking of humanitarian aid entering Gaza.
Hamas said it was abiding by the ceasefire and doing its best to find the hostages’ remains, but that this was hampered by a lack of equipment to identify the bodies.
Hamas spokesman Hazem Kasim said it was difficult to find all the bodies due to the extent of destruction in Gaza.
Palestinians try to retrieve bodies of hostages in Gaza on Monday (AP)
However, Qasim said, “Hamas will continue to make every possible effort to hand over the remaining bodies until this matter is fully concluded and as soon as possible.”
The search for the bodies of the hostages has accelerated in the last few days since the arrival of heavy machinery from Egypt.
As bulldozers worked Tuesday in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip and Nuseyrat further north, fighters wearing Hamas masks were stationed around them.
