DaysofPal – A senior Hamas source has told Middle East Eye that Israel is responsible for delays in locating and returning the bodies of captives still missing in Gaza, amid ongoing tensions following the US-brokered ceasefire that ended the two-year war.
The comments came after Israeli officials announced on Tuesday that the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt would remain closed through Wednesday, accusing Hamas of withholding the bodies of captives it had pledged to return under the ceasefire agreement.
The Hamas source said its negotiators had clearly warned during talks that Israel’s presence and its indiscriminate attacks, which caused widespread destruction across Gaza, would make it difficult to locate the bodies of killed captives. “Time and great effort will be needed after the withdrawal of Israeli forces to collect information about the bodies,” the source said.
The source cited Clause 5(e) of the ceasefire agreement, which calls for the establishment of an information-sharing mechanism between the two sides, facilitated by mediators and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), to exchange information on any deceased hostages not retrieved within 72 hours. The clause requires Hamas to exert maximum effort to ensure the full and safe return of all remaining captives’ remains.
As part of the agreement, Hamas on Monday released 20 living captives held for more than two years, along with the bodies of four killed captives. Twenty-eight dead captives are still due to be handed over, and Hamas said it would begin transferring four more bodies later Tuesday night.
The Hamas source stressed that many captives were killed during Israel’s bombardment of Gaza, along with Palestinian resistance guards, causing loss of contact with units responsible for their protection.
“The Israeli public should hold Netanyahu, his cabinet, and the Israeli army responsible for the killing of these hostages and the loss of their bodies under the rubble, as more than 10,000 Palestinian civilians are believed to be trapped,” the source said.
Hamas also said that its Qassam Brigades repeatedly warned Israel that attacks would endanger captives, but “Israel did not scale back its attacks.” The source said the destruction has “really changed the geography of the area,” making it extremely difficult to locate the bodies.
Despite these challenges, Hamas said it remains committed to fulfilling its obligations under the agreement and is cooperating with international entities to return the remains of all captives.
The source emphasized that Hamas had already met its commitments by releasing the living hostages on time and transferring four dead captives, even as Israel allegedly undermined the prisoner exchange by changing the list of Palestinians to be released at the last minute.
The source condemned Israel’s decision to keep the Rafah crossing closed, calling it a “serious infringement of the agreement” that could further hinder rescue and humanitarian efforts.
“We call on the mediators to intervene immediately to resolve this matter,” he said.
The war on Gaza has left more than 245,000 Palestinians killed and wounded, the majority civilians, and destroyed 92 percent of residential buildings and 88 percent of commercial structures. The devastation has compounded the difficulties of locating captives’ remains and delivering aid to the population.
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