by Charles Bybelezer
The IDF urged the public to act with sensitivity and to await official identification.
The Hamas terror group on Tuesday night transferred the bodies of three hostages to Israel, along with the remains of an unidentified fourth individual, amid growing pressure over its failure to return all 28 deceased captives as required under the Trump administration-brokered ceasefire agreement.
“Following the completion of examinations at the National Institute of Forensic Medicine, the fourth body handed over to Israel by Hamas does not match any of the hostages,” the IDF said on Wednesday.
“Hamas is required to make all necessary efforts to return the deceased hostages,” added the statement.
On Feb. 20, 2025, Hamas transferred to Israel a body it claimed was that of murdered hostage Shiri Bibas, but Israeli authorities soon determined it was a Palestinian from Gaza. Bibas’s actual remains were later returned to Israel.
Earlier Wednesday, the families of Uriel Baruch, 35, who was abducted from the Supernova music festival on Oct. 7, 2023, and Tamir Nimrodi, 18, a soldier kidnapped from his base near the Erez Crossing during the Hamas-led massacre, confirmed their bodies had been identified.
Nimrodi’s death brings the number of fatalities among Israeli troops to 916 on all fronts since the Oct. 7 terror invasion.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum subsequently announced that one of the bodies handed over was that of Eitan Levi, 53. Levi, a taxi driver, was murdered in southern Israel during the Oct. 7 attacks, and his body was also taken to Gaza.
“All the families of the hostages have been updated accordingly, and our hearts are with them in this difficult hour. The effort to return our hostages is ongoing and will not cease until the last hostage is returned,” the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem said in a statement on Tuesday night.
Meanwhile, Israeli authorities late Tuesday confirmed that the bodies received the previous day from Hamas were those of Guy Illuz, Yossi Sharabi, IDF Capt. Daniel Peretz and Nepalese agricultural student Bipin Joshi.
“The government and the entire establishment for the return of captives and missing of the State of Israel are determined, committed and working tirelessly to return all of our deceased hostages for proper burial in their country,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.
“The Hamas terrorist organization is required to uphold its commitments to the mediators and return the fallen as part of the agreement’s implementation,” he added. “We will not compromise on this and we will spare no effort until we return all of the hostages, until the last one. May their memories be a blessing.”
President Isaac Herzog emphasized the Palestinian terrorist group’s “obligation to fulfill its commitment and return all the hostages,” while paying tribute to the seven deceased captives returned to Israel since Monday.
“We as a nation bear a moral obligation to bring back all of our fallen who remain in Gaza. Every one of them, until the last,” Herzog wrote on X.
We share in the deep sorrow of the families of the fallen hostages whose bodies have been returned, and we hope that their burial with dignity will bring the families a measure of closure and a small comfort amid their unbearable pain.
— יצחק הרצוג Isaac Herzog (@Isaac_Herzog) October 15, 2025
We will never forget them.
Hamas has the… pic.twitter.com/EL6kBgxjhy
The U.S.-mediated agreement required Hamas to return all 48 hostages—both living and dead—within 72 hours of the ceasefire taking effect, a period that began Friday with the IDF’s withdrawal from parts of Gaza.
On Tuesday, Israel announced that it would sanction Hamas over the terror group’s delays in returning the deceased hostages, postponing the opening of the Rafah Crossing between Gaza and Egypt and reducing aid supplies into the Strip, Reuters reported.
However, Israeli officials on Wednesday canceled the measures following the return of additional bodies, Kan News reported.
Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir on Wednesday denounced Hamas’s tactics of deception.
“Enough with the disgrace,” the minister wrote on X. “Moments after opening the gates to hundreds of trucks, Hamas quickly reverted to its well-known tactics—lying, deceiving, and abusing families and bodies. Nazi terrorism understands only force, and the only way to solve problems with it is to wipe it off the face of the earth.”
U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday noted that Hamas had failed to meet its obligations under the deal but urged all parties to move forward.
“All twenty [living] hostages are back and feeling as good as can be expected. A big burden has been lifted, but the job is not done,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. “The dead have not been returned, as promised! Phase two begins right now!!!”
"What We Feared is Now Happening Before Our Eyes… We Cannot Rest Until Every Last Hostage is Returned”
— Bring Them Home Now (@bringhomenow) October 14, 2025
Following yesterday's historic return of 20 living hostages and 4 deceased hostages after more than two years in captivity, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum sent an… pic.twitter.com/XFLntZp6QV
Following Monday’s return of 20 living captives after more than two years in Gaza, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum sent an urgent letter to U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, expressing profound gratitude and deep alarm.
“We cannot rest, and we know you will not rest, until every last hostage is returned,” the letter said. “We ask you to pull out every stop and leave no stone unturned in demanding that Hamas fulfill their end of the agreement and bring all the remaining hostages home.”
Hamas is expected to hand over an additional group of four bodies of hostages to Israel on Wednesday.
Charles Bybelezer
Source: https://www.jns.org/hamas-says-four-more-bodies-of-hostages-returned-to-israel/
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