Hamas begins transfer of deceased hostages, Israel threatens to limit aid due to slow pace

On October 13, Hamas began to transfer the bodies of 28 deceased hostages that it holds in Gaza, all of which, under the terms of the recent ceasefire agreement, it was supposed to hand over when it released 20 living hostages the same day. However, the group only transferred the bodies of four hostages on October 13, followed by releasing four more bodies to Israel in the evening of October 14–15. Israel considers the slow transfer of the bodies to be a violation of the deal agreed to in Egypt’s Sharm el Sheikh on October 8.

“Under the ceasefire deal, Hamas had until 12:00 local time (4 a.m. ET) Monday to hand over all hostages to Israel – alive and deceased. Only four of the deceased – Guy Illouz, Yossi Sharabi, Bipin Joshi and Daniel Peretz – were released that evening,” CNN noted. However, reports suggest that the slow pace of the transfers may stem from Hamas finding it difficult to recover all the bodies. “The search for human remains is obviously an even bigger challenge than having the people alive being released. That’s a massive challenge,” ICRC spokesperson Christian Cardon said.

On October 14, after Hamas had not released more deceased hostages, Israeli officials suggested they could limit the aid entering Gaza and would refuse to open the Rafah border crossing with Egypt if Hamas did not abide by the terms of the deal. “Any delay or deliberate avoidance will be considered a gross violation of the agreement and will be responded to accordingly,” Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz stated on social media.

Meanwhile, Kaja Kallas, the EU Foreign Policy chief, wrote on October 13 that “the peace plan requires strong international backing to succeed. The EU stands ready to do its part. On Wednesday [October 15], it will restart a civilian mission to monitor the border crossing between Gaza and Egypt. This mission can play an important role in supporting the ceasefire.”

When the first four coffins with deceased hostages were handed over on October 13, they were transferred via the Red Cross to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The Israeli military held a short ceremony for the deceased, draping the coffins with flags and reciting a chapter from the Book of Psalms. The coffins were then escorted by IDF and Israel Security Agency officials to Israel’s National Center of Forensic Medicine, where identification took place. The first four deceased hostages were identified as Guy Illouz, Captain Daniel Peretz, Yossi Sharabi, and Bipin Joshi. Joshi was a Nepali citizen who was kidnapped during Hamas’s attack on October 7, 2023.

Overnight between October 14 and 15, another four bodies were transferred. “Hamas has informed the mediators that it will transfer four more bodies of deceased hostages to Israel on Wednesday, a Middle Eastern diplomat and a second source familiar with the matter,” told The Times of Israel. Israel’s Ynet noted that three of the bodies transferred overnight had been identified as Eitan Levy, Tamir Nimrodi, and Uriel Baruch. By October 15, a total of seven deceased hostages had been identified, and 21 were still missing.

In Gaza, Hamas gunmen have returned to the streets and clashed with members of other armed groups. Hamas has also been filmed executing people, leading to a condemnation from the Palestinian Authority. US President Donald Trump suggested that Hamas has “killed a number of gang members” as it has re-emerged in Gaza.

Israeli Defense Minister Katz noted on October 15 that “the IDF is acting in accordance with instructions and enforcing a clear policy of preparedness along the Yellow Line—which includes more than 50% of the territory of Gaza.” He added that “Any violation will be met with an immediate response. Yesterday, terrorists who tried to approach and cross were thwarted—and so it will be in the future.”

The IDF said on October 14 that “several suspects were identified crossing the yellow line and approaching IDF troops operating in the northern Gaza Strip, which constitutes a violation of the agreement.” The IDF opened fire to remove the threat, the Israeli military said. Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry claimed that six people were killed in the incident.

Reporting from Israel, Seth J. Frantzman is an adjunct fellow at FDD and a contributor to FDD’s Long War Journal. He is the senior Middle East correspondent and analyst at The Jerusalem Post, and author of The October 7 War: Israel’s Battle for Security in Gaza (2024).