On Tuesday, Israel received two coffins via the Red Cross, which the Palestinian group Hamas stated contained the bodies of deceased hostages. This occurred as the Israeli government accused Hamas of ceasefire violations, leading to renewed hostilities and a reported increase in casualties in Gaza. Forensic tests identified the remains in the received coffins as belonging to a hostage previously recovered by Israeli forces.
Hostage Body Transfers and Identification
Israel received two coffins in Gaza via the Red Cross, which Hamas stated contained the bodies of deceased hostages, according to the Israeli prime minister's office. Hamas had earlier announced it recovered the bodies of Israeli hostages Amiram Cooper and Sahar Baruch.
Upon transfer and forensic examination in Israel, the bodies were identified as belonging to Ofir Tzarfati, a hostage whose body had been recovered by Israeli forces in Gaza in late 2023.
The Israeli government accused Hamas of violating the Gaza ceasefire deal, stating the group handed over human remains that did not belong to one of the 13 deceased Israeli and foreign hostages still in Gaza. The Israeli military released drone footage which it stated showed Hamas members removing a body bag from a building in Gaza City, reburying it, and then arranging its discovery in front of Red Cross staff.
The Red Cross stated its staff were unaware the body bag had been moved before their arrival and described the presented recovery as "unacceptable." Hamas rejected these statements as "baseless allegations" and accused Israel of "seeking to fabricate false pretexts in preparation for taking new aggressive steps."
Ceasefire Violations and Escalation
Hours after the body transfer incident, the Israeli government accused Hamas of another ceasefire violation, alleging that the group's fighters had killed an Israeli soldier in an attack in southern Gaza. Hamas denied involvement in the incident, which occurred in the Rafah area.
In response, Israel's prime minister ordered air strikes across Gaza on Tuesday night. The Israeli military reported attacking "dozens of terror targets and terrorists." Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry reported 104 Palestinians were killed, including 46 children and 20 women. The ministry stated this made it the deadliest day since the ceasefire took effect on October 10.
Ceasefire Agreement Context
The ceasefire agreement, brokered by the US, Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey, included a commitment from Hamas to return 20 living and 28 dead hostages within 72 hours. On October 13, all living Israeli hostages were released in exchange for 250 Palestinian prisoners and 1,718 detainees from Gaza.
Israel has also exchanged the bodies of 195 Palestinians for the bodies of 13 Israeli hostages and two foreign hostages (one Thai, one Nepalese) returned by Hamas. Of the 13 dead hostages reportedly still in Gaza, 11 are Israeli, one is Tanzanian, and one is Thai.
All but one of the dead hostages still in Gaza were among the 251 people abducted during the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, during which approximately 1,200 other people were killed. Israel responded with a military campaign in Gaza, which has resulted in more than 68,600 fatalities, including over 200 since the ceasefire began, according to the territory's health ministry.
International Response
US President Donald Trump stated that "nothing" would jeopardize the ceasefire agreement. He also commented that Israel should "hit back" when its soldiers are targeted.