The vote was a crucial next step for the fragile ceasefire and efforts to outline Gaza’s future following two years of war between Israel and Hamas.
Middle East Peace
The remains of four hostages are still in Gaza after Palestinian militants released the remains of another on Sunday.
With Monday’s return, the bodies of 270 Palestinians have been handed back since the start of the ceasefire.
Since the ceasefire in Gaza took effect on Oct. 10, Palestinian militants had released the remains of 17 hostages, with 11 remaining in Gaza.
Had President Donald Trump not been re-elected, terrorist entities would try to “wipe out” the State of Israel, Sen. Rick Scott told a packed crowd in Las Vegas.
Militants had previously returned the remains of 15 hostages since the start of the ceasefire, with 13 more still to be recovered.
Israel faced sharp criticism as it stopped the entry of all food and other supplies into Gaza on Sunday and warned of “additional consequences” for Hamas if a fragile ceasefire isn’t extended.
The latest round of talks on the second phase of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has made “no progress,” a senior Hamas official said.
Negotiators discussed a second phase that could end the war in Gaza and see the remaining living captives returned home.
The Israeli military’s main findings were that the region’s most powerful and sophisticated military misread Hamas’ intentions and underestimated its capabilities.
Negotiations between Israel and Hamas on the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire began Thursday in the Egyptian capital, Egypt said.
Hamas handed over the bodies of four hostages late Wednesday night in exchange for Israel’s release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.
Agam Berger told Israeli public radio Reshet Bet that she was moved around multiple times during the nearly 16 months she was held in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli tanks moved into the occupied West Bank on Sunday for the first time in decades after the defense minister said troops will remain in parts of the territory for a year and tens of thousands of Palestinians cannot return.
Hundreds of thousands of people packed into a stadium in Beirut and nearby for the funeral of Hezbollah’s former leader, Hassan Nasrallah, nearly five months after he was killed in an Israeli airstrike.
Hamas on Saturday released the last six living hostages expected under the first phase of its ceasefire with Israel.
The incident raised new doubts about the future of the fragile ceasefire deal, which has paused over 15 months of war but is nearing the end of its first phase.
No injuries were reported after a series of explosions on three buses in a parking lot rattled central Israel on Thursday.
Forensic scientists identified the remains of two Israeli child hostages and 83-year-old who had been a journalist and peace activist, saying all were murdered in Palestinian terrorist captivity.
The handover will include the bodies of a mother and her two young children whose fate was uncertain and a retired journalist in his 80s.
The warring sides have yet to negotiate the second and more difficult phase, in which Hamas would release dozens more hostages in exchange for a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal.