DaysofPal – Search operations are intensifying in the eastern parts of Khan Younis, where members of Hamas’s Qassam Brigades are working alongside teams from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to locate and recover the bodies of Israeli captives killed during the war.
According to Hamas, the group is ready to extract all the bodies of Israeli captives buried beyond the so-called “yellow line,” an area currently under Israeli control. It has urged mediators to pressure Israel to permit more heavy machinery and specialized rescue teams to enter the area, saying such support is crucial to accelerate the recovery process.
Hamas officials said the search was part of the second phase of the ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement that came into effect on October 10. However, they also expressed deep concern over the operational difficulties, noting that many of the bodies remain trapped beneath the rubble of entire neighborhoods destroyed by Israel’s massive bombardment campaign.
On Saturday, Egyptian engineering equipment, including bulldozers, excavators, and transport trucks, accompanied by ICRC teams, entered Bani Suheila, east of Khan Younis, to assist in locating the remains of Israeli prisoners believed to have been buried there. This marks only the second time that Israel has permitted such equipment to operate in this highly sensitive zone.
Despite the ceasefire, the Israeli military continues to exert pressure on the ground, carrying out sporadic airstrikes that complicate recovery efforts and heighten fears among workers in the area.
Since the start of the truce, Hamas has handed over 20 living Israeli captives and the remains of 19 others, out of a total of 28 captives identified under the first phase of the ceasefire deal.
The humanitarian cost in Gaza is still astounding. The Government Media Office in Gaza reports that 9,500 Palestinians remain missing, believed to be buried beneath the rubble left by Israel’s devastating two-year assault on the enclave.
The ceasefire agreement, brokered by U.S. President Donald Trump, ended the Israeli “war of annihilation” that began on October 7, 2013.
Over 68,000 Palestinians were killed and over 170,000 injured during the genocide, with women and children making up the majority of the victims. Around 90% of Gaza’s civilian infrastructure was destroyed, with reconstruction costs estimated by the United Nations at $70 billion.
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