Hamas hands over four more bodies of hostages to Israel

Remains were handed over after Israel announced it would limit the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza and Trump threatened to use violence against the Palestinian militant group if it did not disarm.

Hamas handed over four more bodies of dead hostages this Tuesday (14/10) after Israel announced that it will limit the entry of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip and US President Donald Trump threatened to use violence against the Palestinian militant group if it did not disarm.

A day after Trump spoke in Jerusalem promoting his plan to end the war, Hamas fighters executed men in the streets, and Israel informed the United Nations that it will allow in only half the number of aid trucks agreed in last week’s ceasefire agreement.

Israeli officials said Israel decided to restrict aid and postpone plans to open the southern border crossing with Egypt because Hamas violated the ceasefire agreement by not handing over all the bodies of those hostages.

Hours later, Hamas, considered a terrorist group by several countries, informed the mediators that it would transfer four bodies to Israel. Later, Israeli authorities stated that the Red Cross had received four coffins from Hamas and was on its way to hand over the remains to Israeli forces.

If their identities are confirmed, the total number of dead hostages handed over by Hamas to Israel since the start of this ceasefire will reach eight, leaving 20 still in the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli government assured that “all families of the hostages” were informed and “we are with them at this difficult time”.

“We will continue to update information with reliable data as necessary,” the statement concluded.

The four bodies returned on Monday night were identified as those of Bipin Joshi, a 24-year-old Nepalese student kidnapped from Kibbutz Kissufim; Guy Illouz, 26, kidnapped at the Nova music festival, scene of the worst massacre committed on October 7; Daniel Peretz, 22, captured in an armored personnel carrier; and Yossi Sharabi, killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza after being kidnapped at age 53 from Kibbutz Be’eri.

In exchange for the return of the bodies, Israel sent the remains of 45 Palestinians from the territory back to Gaza.

Trump: “If they don’t disarm, we will disarm them”

The two-year Israeli assault has left much of the Gaza Strip in ruins. On Tuesday, Hamas said Israel was killing people in Gaza and violating the ceasefire. Trump suggested that Hamas was reneging on its promise to return the dead and threatened the group with violence.

“If they don’t disarm, we will disarm them,” Trump told reporters in Washington after returning from his weekend trip to the Middle East. “And it will happen quickly and perhaps violently.”

Hamas – considered a terrorist organization by some countries – quickly took back the streets of urban areas of Gaza following the partial withdrawal of Israeli troops last week.

In a video released Monday night, Hamas fighters dragged seven men with their hands tied behind their backs to a Gaza City square, forced them to kneel and shot them in the back.

A Hamas source confirmed that the video was filmed on Monday and that fighters from the Palestinian group took part in the executions. The Reuters news agency was able to confirm the location through visible geographic features.

On Monday, Trump proclaimed the “historic dawn of a new Middle East” to the Israeli parliament, as Israel and Hamas were exchanging the last 20 living Israeli hostages in Gaza for nearly 2,000 Palestinian detainees and prisoners.

Obstacles to permanent peace

Gaza residents said Hamas fighters were increasingly visible on Tuesday, positioning themselves along routes needed to deliver aid.

Palestinian security officials said dozens of people have been killed in clashes between Hamas fighters and rivals in recent days.

Meanwhile, Israel, using aerial drones, killed five Palestinians as they went to check homes in a suburb east of Gaza City, and an Israeli airstrike killed one person and injured another near Khan Younis, Gaza health officials said.

Hamas accused Israel of violating the ceasefire. The Israeli army said it fired on people who crossed truce lines and approached its forces after ignoring calls to retreat.

A summit co-hosted by Trump in Egypt on Monday ended with no public announcement of significant progress in establishing an international military force for Gaza, or a new governing body.

Hunger continues in Gaza

Gaza suffers from hunger that afflicts more than half a million Palestinians, but humanitarian aid trucks have not yet been allowed to enter the territory in the expected quantity. Plans have not yet been implemented to open the passage to Egypt and allow some residents to leave, initially to evacuate the injured for medical treatment.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said the war cannot end until Hamas surrenders its weapons and cedes control of Gaza, a demand the fighters have rejected.

Hamas sources said the group would no longer tolerate violations of order in Gaza and would target armed looters and drug traffickers. The group, although greatly weakened after two years of Israeli bombings and ground incursions, has gradually reasserted itself since the ceasefire came into effect.

Hundreds of workers were mobilized to begin removing debris from routes needed to access damaged or destroyed housing and to repair broken water pipes. Road clearing and security will also be necessary to increase the delivery of humanitarian aid.

The ceasefire ended two years of devastating war in Gaza, triggered by the October 7, 2023 attack, in which Hamas-led gunmen killed around 1,200 people and took 251 hostages to Gaza, according to Israeli data. The Israeli army has killed at least 67,000 people in Gaza, according to local health officials, and thousands more may have died under the rubble. Gaza’s Civil Defense Service said 250 bodies had been recovered since the start of the truce.

Originally published by DW on 10/14/2025