Hamas has expanded its search for bodies of hostages in the Gaza Strip, after Egypt deployed a team of experts and heavy equipment to help retrieve them.
Under the US-brokered ceasefire, which took effect on October 10, Hamas is expected to return the remains of all Israeli hostages as soon as possible.
Hamas has returned the remains of 15 hostages but hasn’t handed over any in five days.
Thirteen more remain, according to Israel, which has returned the bodies of 195 Palestinians, many of them unidentified.
Palestinians watch machinery and workers from Egypt searching for bodies of hostages at Hamad City in southern Gaza.Credit: AP
Palestinians watch machinery and some workers from Egypt searching for the bodies of hostages at Hamad City, in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip.Credit: AP
Hamas Gaza chief Khalil al-Hayya on Sunday said the group had started searching new areas for the remaining bodies.
Children and others watched the Egyptian equipment claw through the sand near badly damaged buildings in the southern city of Khan Younis.
US President Donald Trump warned at the weekend that he was “watching very closely” to ensure Hamas returned more bodies.
More complicated steps lie ahead under the ceasefire plan, including the disarming of Hamas and the postwar governance of famine-stricken Gaza, where the UN and partners continue to urge Israel to allow in more humanitarian aid.
AP
