In a statement that has both offered a glimmer of hope and fueled fresh tensions, the militant group Hamas has insisted it remains committed to a U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement with Israel and is working to locate and return the bodies of all remaining hostages buried under the ruins of the Gaza Strip.
The declaration comes as a delicate truce holds, but is tested by the logistical and political challenges of recovering the deceased and managing the fragile peace.
A Delicate Exchange and a Daunting Task
The ceasefire, spearheaded by U.S. President Donald Trump, recently concluded its first major exchange. Hamas returned 20 surviving Israeli hostages and the remains of nine of the 28 known deceased hostages. In a move that underscored the chaos of the process, an additional body was returned that Israel said did not belong to a former hostage.
In return, Israel freed nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners from its jails and halted the intense military campaign it launched following Hamas’s cross-border attack on October 7, 2023.
The current stalemate revolves around the remains of 19 hostages that Hamas says are trapped under rubble alongside an “untold number” of Palestinian dead. In its statement, Hamas insisted on “its commitment to the agreement and its implementation, including its keenness to hand over all remaining corpses,” but cautioned that the process “may require some time, as some of these corpses were buried in tunnels destroyed by the occupation, while others remain under the rubble of buildings it bombed and demolished.”
International Involvement and Domestic Pressure
Responding to a call for assistance from Hamas, Turkey has deployed dozens of disaster relief specialists to aid in the complex search-and-recovery operation across Gaza’s devastated landscape.
However, patience is wearing thin among the families of the Israeli dead. The main campaign group representing hostages’ families demanded that Israel “immediately halt the implementation of any further stages of the agreement as long as Hamas continues to blatantly violate its obligations.”
The political pressure is equally intense in Israel. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reaffirmed his determination to “secure the return of all hostages,” echoing a warning from his defense minister that the military “will resume fighting” if Hamas fails to uphold its end of the deal.
From Washington, President Trump initially projected patience, insisting that Hamas was “actually digging” for the remains. However, he later expressed frustration on Truth Social, stating, “If Hamas continues to kill people in Gaza, which was not the Deal, we will have no choice but to go in and kill them,” in an apparent reference to recent internal violence.
A Fractured Gaza and a Deepening Humanitarian Crisis
Since the partial Israeli withdrawal, Hamas has been moving to reassert its authority over Gaza’s ruined cities. Reports have emerged of a crackdown, including street executions of alleged collaborators. Clashes have also erupted between the group’s security units and armed Palestinian clans, some of whom are alleged to have received Israeli backing.
Meanwhile, the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza remains dire. The United Nations declared famine in August, and the World Health Organization warns that infectious diseases are “spiraling out of control,” with only 13 of Gaza’s 36 hospitals even partially functioning.
“Whether meningitis… diarrhea, respiratory illnesses, we’re talking about a mammoth amount of work,” said Hanan Balkhy, the WHO’s regional director.
A critical point of concern is the reopening of southern Gaza’s Rafah crossing for aid. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar indicated that preparations were underway and expressed hope it would reopen soon, though Israel has previously stated the crossing would be for people, not aid, leaving the situation unclear.
Glimmers of Joy Amid Overwhelming Loss
For some, the ceasefire has brought an end to two years of agony. Families of the released hostages are finally experiencing reunion.
“My children are home! Two years ago, one morning, I lost half of my family,” said Sylvia Cunio, mother of Ariel and David Cunio, who were released from captivity.
On the Palestinian side, Israel returned the bodies of 30 Palestinians to Gaza on Thursday, part of the deal’s arrangement to turn over the bodies of 15 Palestinians for every deceased Israeli returned.
Yet, for most Gazans, the cessation of bombing offers only a temporary respite from an overwhelming reality of loss and destruction. Returning to his home in Gaza City, Mustafa Mahram found only ruins. “There’s no water — no clean water, not even salty water, no water at all. No essentials of life exist — no food, no drink, nothing,” he said. “As you can see, all that’s left is rubble.”
According to the Gaza Health Ministry, Israel’s military campaign has killed at least 67,967 people, figures the United Nations considers credible. As the search for the dead continues, the staggering scale of the loss hangs heavily over the precarious peace.
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