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The bodies of 15 more unidentified Palestinians killed during the war in Gaza were handed over by Israel Thursday in the final exchange of prisoners and detainees between Israel and Hamas as part of the initial phase of the U.S.-brokered ceasefire plan.
The release of the bodies came three days after Israeli forces recovered the remains of the last hostage — Ran Gvili — held in Gaza for more than 840 days after he was taken by Hamas in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel.
Families of Palestinians have been anxiously waiting to hear the fate of their loved ones as forensic teams work to identify the final batch of unidentified bodies from Israel.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) facilitated the handover on Thursday, transporting the bodies to Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.
ICRC spokesperson Pat Griffiths said Thursday’s handover marked the end of a months-long operation to facilitate the release of the living and dead between both sides.
In total, 360 bodies of dead Palestinians have been released to Gaza officials — all of whom were unidentified at the time of the release, with many bearing signs of torture and abuse, according to forensic experts in Gaza.
The Gaza Health Ministry said Thursday that Israel had released 30 bodies of Palestinians killed during the war, taking the total of bodies it has received since Monday to 120. Forensic experts in Gaza are working to identify the bodies, some of which they say show signs of physical abuse.
So far, only 99 of the Palestinian bodies handed over since October have been identified, Gaza’s Health Ministry said, with health officials forced to bury unidentified bodies in mass graves.
“The work that forensic authorities do here is incredibly important,” Griffiths told CBC News freelancer Mohamed El Saife outside Al-Shifa Hospital on Thursday.
“Families [have been] waiting for answers for months, if not years, [and] will finally have the chance to receive them.”
Mu’in Al-Wahidi, head of the special committee for receiving bodies at Al-Shifa Hospital, said forensic officials will now work to identify the bodies.
The latest release wrapped up an operation that began in October after a truce deal was signed between Hamas and Israel on Oct. 10, 2025, allowing for the release of 20 living hostages by Hamas and 1,808 Palestinian prisoners by Israel. In subsequent phases, the ICRC facilitated returns of the deceased, including 27 of 28 Israeli hostages and 360 Palestinians, it said.
“We are relieved to have helped reunite families with their loved ones. For families whose deceased relatives were returned, we hope this brought the possibility to fully mourn,” said Julien Lerisson, the ICRC’s regional head.
Israel has recovered the remains of Ran Gvili, a police officer who was killed during the October 7 Hamas attack. Gvili’s remains were the last held in Gaza, having been held there for more than 840 days. The recovery is seen as a significant step ahead of the next phase of U.S. President Donald Trump’s peace plan.
Handing over all remaining living and dead hostages was a core commitment written into the first phase of the ceasefire deal. Subsequent stages remain to be fulfilled, with deep divisions over what comes next, including Hamas’s disarmament.
“It is crucial that a ceasefire remains after this phase, it is crucial that humanitarian aid is allowed into Gaza without obstacles and for international law to be respected,” Amani Al-Naouq, spokesperson for the Red Cross in Gaza, told CBC News.
Gaza’s Health Ministry said Israeli airstrikes, tank shelling and gunfire have killed at least 490 people since the truce took effect in October, after two years of war that widely demolished the Palestinian enclave.
The latest deaths add to more than 71,400 Palestinians killed in Israel’s military assault on Gaza, according to figures provided by Palestinian officials. The war was triggered by the 2023 Hamas-led attack in southern Israel that killed some 1,200 and took 251 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
On Monday, medics said two men were killed by Israeli forces in eastern Khan Younis, in an area adjacent to where the army operates, adding to the latest violence rattling the fragile ceasefire.
The Israeli military told Reuters it was unaware of any casualties as a result of Israeli fire on Thursday.
Later in the day Thursday, an Israeli airstrike killed at least one Palestinian and wounded others in the Maghazi camp of central Gaza. It was unclear what prompted the attack, and the Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Israel said four soldiers have been killed by Palestinian militants in the small coastal territory during the ceasefire.
The two sides have traded blame over the truce violations. By advancing to Phase 2, the U.S. and mediator partners Egypt and Qatar must confront the more contentious issue of Hamas’s disarmament, which the group has long rejected. The plan also calls for deploying an international peacekeeping force.
