DaysofPal – Israel on Monday handed over the bodies of 15 Palestinian prisoners as part of the ongoing exchange deal, Palestinian sources said.
According to local reports, families gathered at Gaza’s Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis to identify their relatives through remaining personal features or clothing, as forensic testing remains nearly impossible under the current blockade.
The destruction of laboratories and the lack of basic equipment have made proper identification a painful and uncertain process for many families.
Representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) reportedly received the bodies from Israeli forces at the Kissufim crossing, east of Deir al-Balah, before transferring them into Gaza.
This latest handover brings the total number of Palestinian bodies returned by Israel to 315, in exchange for 24 Israeli soldiers’ remains. Rights groups have long criticized Israel’s long-standing policy of withholding Palestinian bodies, calling it a violation of international humanitarian law.
On the ground, Israeli violations of the precarious ceasefire persist through sporadic airstrikes, limitations on necessary supplies, and the continuous blockade that keeps medical supplies and fuel from getting to Gaza’s barely operational hospitals.
On Sunday, the Gaza Municipality warned that the city faces an escalating humanitarian disaster as the rainy season begins. In a brief statement, it said, “The city is experiencing a major catastrophe due to the destruction of infrastructure and displacement, which could worsen with the onset of winter.”
With vast areas reduced to rubble and drainage systems destroyed, flooding and disease outbreaks now threaten tens of thousands of displaced families sheltering in damaged buildings or makeshift tents.
The combination of war damage, blockade, and neglect has left Gaza’s population struggling not only with loss and hunger but now with the added fear that winter may bring a new wave of suffering.
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