The remains turned over by Hamas the previous day corresponded to three captives taken by Palestinian militants during the October 7, 2023 incident, Israel revealed Monday.
As part of the continuing ceasefire agreement in Gaza mediated by US President Donald Trump, the remains were turned over.
“Following the completion of the identification process… representatives of the IDF (military) informed the families of the hostages killed in action… that their loved ones have been repatriated to Israel and identified,” the statement said.
The bodies belong to American-Israeli Captain Omer Neutra, who was 21 when he was kidnapped, Corporal Oz Daniel, who was 19, and Colonel Assaf Hamami, 40, who was the top Hamas officer executed.
The Red Cross received their remains on Sunday from Hamas.
The corpses were discovered earlier on Sunday “along the route of one of the tunnels in the southern Gaza Strip,” according to Hamas’ armed wing.
When the truce took effect on October 10, Hamas held 48 hostages in Gaza, 20 of whom were still alive.
Since the start of the truce, Hamas has released the 20 surviving hostages and begun handing over the remains of 28 deceased captives.
Of the latter, it has so far returned 20 — including 18 Israelis, one Thai national, and one Nepali.
While the Palestinian organization claims the process is delayed because many remains are buried beneath Gaza’s debris, Israel has accused Hamas of taking too long to return the deceased.
It has repeatedly urged the Red Cross and mediators to give it the tools and staff it needs to retrieve the dead.
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