Hamas to Release Body of Another Israeli Hostage

As President Donald Trump’s 48-hour deadline nears, Hamas announced on Monday that it will return the body of another Israeli hostage. Despite this development, they still hold onto the bodies of 12 other Israeli hostages. It’s not clear yet who the deceased individual is that they plan to release.

“In alignment with the Al-Aqsa flood prisoner exchange agreement, the Martyrs Izz El-Din Al-Qassam Brigades will deliver the body of a prisoner recovered in the Gaza Strip today at 9 pm local time,” Hamas stated.

On social media, Trump noted on Saturday that contacting some of the deceased hostages had proven “difficult.” He remarked, “Some of the bodies are difficult to contact, but some can be returned right now. Others, for some reason, cannot be returned. Perhaps it has something to do with their disarmament, but when I said ‘both sides will be treated fairly,’ that only applies if they comply with their obligations. Let’s see what happens in the next 48 hours. I’m keeping a close eye on this.”

Before Trump’s comments, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee met with the families of two Americans who lost their lives in the October 7 attack.

“We will never forget the lives of the hostages who died in Hamas captivity,” wrote Senator Marco Rubio in a post on social media. “We will not rest until their remains, and all of them, are returned.” Authorities confirmed that 19-year-old Itai Chen, a dual citizen of the U.S. and Israel, was kidnapped by Hamas during the attack but was later confirmed dead by the Israeli Defense Forces.

While Rubio noted that his visit to Israel was “very productive moving forward,” he emphasized that any U.S.-brokered peace plan won’t be viable until all hostages, both living and deceased, are returned.