“Israel has received chests with four fallen hostages via the Red Cross,” said Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyah’s office in a statement.
Experts have begun the process of formally identifying the bodies, remains after four of the hundreds of hostages taken in Israel and brought to Gaza at Hama’s terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
At about the same time as the four bodies were released on Wednesday evening, a Red Cross convoy left tens of released Palestinier ofer prison, on the West Bank occupied by Israel.
Celebration on the West Bank
Cheering crowds gathered in nearby Beitunia to celebrate and many tried to get a glimpse of the bus as it passed. Later, the convoy was met by further joyful crowds in the city of Ramallah.
Several of the released were raised in the air by relatives and family members, while others put on interviews sitting on friends or relatives’ shoulders before being taken to a health check.
Several hours later, buses arrived with hundreds of other released Palestinians in Khan Yunis in Gaza.
They would have been released already last weekend, but Israel stopped the process after the country accused Hamas of making propaganda scenes of the re -hostage.
Hamas: Must negotiate
Furthermore, when the remains of four hostages were to be handed over last week, it turned out that one of the bodies was not the woman who Hamas stated it was. Israel responded by continuing to hold 600 Palestinians, who would then have been released, imprisoned.
It is unclear exactly how many of them have been released so far.
After the gathering of hostage against released Palestinians, Hamas claimed that Israel now has no choice but to begin negotiations on a second phase of the cease -fired in Gaza.
“We forced a synchronization of the process of handing over the bodies of enemy prisoners with the release of our heroic prisoners,” wrote the terror -stamped group in a post on telegram.