Israel returns 30 Palestinian bodies to Gaza: Health Ministry in Hamas-run territory
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Members of the Palestinian Civil Defence carry a body at a cemetery in Deir al-Balah after the remains of unidentified Palestinians were returned by Israel under a US-brokered ceasefire deal.
PHOTO: AFP
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GAZA - Israel returned the bodies of 30 Palestinians to Gaza on Oct 22, bringing the total number handed over under the ceasefire deal to 195, the Health Ministry in the Hamas-run territory said.
Under the deal brokered by US President Donald Trump
Israel’s military said on Oct 22 that the remains of two more hostages returned the day before from Gaza had been identified as those of Mr Aryeh Zalmanovich and Master Sergeant Tamir Adar.
Since Oct 10, the remains of 15 hostages
Gaza’s Health Ministry said that 57 of the returned Palestinian bodies had so far been identified by their relatives, while 54 unidentified bodies had been buried on Oct 22.
Gaza’s civil defence agency, a rescue force operating under Hamas authority, said the funeral procession began at Nasser Hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis and proceeded to a cemetery in Deir el-Balah, in central Gaza.
AFP footage from Nasser Hospital showed dozens of bodies laid out on the floor in white body bags as rescue workers stood in a line to pray over the dead.
Ms Umm Hassan Hammad said she had been unable to identify the body of her son, who has been missing since Oct 7, 2023
“Every day I come here, maybe I recognise him from his clothes or the trousers he went out in since Oct 7,” she said. AFP
