The remains of three individuals transferred by Hamas on Friday were confirmed not to be those of any of the deceased hostages.
Following forensic testing, Israeli officials concluded that the remains do not belong to the 11 deceased hostages still held in Gaza, has learned.
“The remains we received are not our hostages,” the office of the Israeli Prime Minister told The Associated Press following the examination. However, neither Netanyahu’s office nor any other Israeli authorities confirmed the identities of the remains to the AP. It remains unclear who these individuals were and the reason for their transfer to Israel.
Since the U.S.-brokered ceasefire commenced earlier this month, Hamas has repatriated the remains of 17 hostages. Among previous transfers, Israel has reported instances where Hamas returned remains that did not correspond to the remaining deceased hostages. Hamas had previously returned additional remains identified as belonging to Ofir Tzarfati, whose body was initially recovered in 2023.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) clarified its role in the transfer of hostages’ remains. In a statement, the ICRC affirmed that it “does not take part in locating the remains.”
“In accordance with international humanitarian law,” the ICRC stated, “it is the responsibility of the parties to search for, collect, and return the dead.”
On Thursday, the remains of Amiram Cooper and Sahar Baruch were identified, bringing the number of deceased hostages remaining in the Gaza Strip to 11, including U.S. citizens Itay Chen and Omer Neutra.
Israeli intelligence suggests Cooper was alive when abducted from his home in Kibbutz Nir Oz during the October 7, 2023, attacks. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) estimate Cooper was killed in February 2024. He was 84 years old and is survived by his wife, four children, and 11 grandchildren.
Baruch was abducted from his residence in Kibbutz Be’eri during the massacre. The IDF estimates he was murdered on December 8, 2023, at the age of 25. Baruch is survived by his parents and two siblings.
In addition to Neutra and Chen, the other remaining deceased hostages include Meny Godard, Hadar Goldin, Ran Gvili, Asaf Hamami, Joshua Loitu Mollel, Dror Or, Oz Daniel, Lior Rudaeff, and Sudthisak Rinthalak.
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