Overview
- Israeli officials said three bodies transferred Friday via the ICRC do not belong to any of the 11 deceased hostages still unreturned, a finding announced after examinations at the Abu Kabir forensic center.
- Air and ground fire were reported around Khan Younis as Gaza’s Health Ministry counted five deaths in the past 48 hours and 226 Palestinians killed since the ceasefire began on October 10.
- Two bodies handed over earlier in the week were identified as Amiram Cooper and Sahar Baruch, leaving 11 of the 28 agreed-for-return hostages’ remains still in Gaza, according to Israeli statements.
- Israel returned 30 Palestinian bodies on Friday, bringing total transfers to 225 since the truce, with Gaza medical authorities citing severe burns, amputations and binding that hinder family identifications.
- Regional dynamics tightened as Turkey set a Monday foreign ministers’ meeting on Gaza stabilization and Israel reported killing Hezbollah operatives in south Lebanon alongside warnings from Defense Minister Israel Katz.