TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel has completed identification of the bodies of two more hostages, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said Wednesday, as U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance sounded a cheerful note during a visit to Israel about progress in a fragile ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
Authorities identified the dead hostages as Arie Zalmanovic and Tamir Adar. Their bodies were transported in coffins by the Red Cross and handed over to the Israeli military in the Gaza Strip. The military ceremony, which will be attended by the Israel Defense Forces' chief rabbi, was scheduled for later, Netanyahu's office said.
The two were killed at Kibbutz Nir Oz in an attack by Hamas militants on October 7, 2023, which sparked a two-year war.
Since the ceasefire began on October 10, the remains of 15 hostages have been returned to Israel. Another 13 people still need to be returned to Gaza and handed over, a key element of the ceasefire agreement.
Meanwhile, funerals for more than 50 Palestinians are scheduled for Wednesday at the Deir al-Balah cemetery in the Gaza Strip. The bodies were displayed outside Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis before burial. The 50 are among the 165 Palestinian bodies handed over by Israel so far.
Vance will meet with Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog on Wednesday. He is accompanied by US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, son-in-law of former President Donald Trump.
On Tuesday, Vance, Witkoff and Kushner said the ceasefire had exceeded expectations but acknowledged flare-ups of violence in recent days.
Uncertainty remains over the peace plan, including the disarmament of Hamas, the deployment of international security forces in Gaza and who will govern the territory. Vance said Tuesday that officials were discussing the composition of the security force, mentioning Turkey and Indonesia as countries expected to contribute troops.
Britain is also sending a small contingent of officers to Israel to help monitor the ceasefire.
Charity says armed group has seized its facility in Gaza
A leading Palestinian non-governmental organization that offers mental health services to Gazans said on Wednesday that there was an “armed raid and violent takeover” of one of its facilities in the territory last week.
The Gaza Community Mental Health Program said an “armed group” it did not identify stormed a facility in Gaza City on Oct. 13, took over the building, forcibly expelled guards and moved their families there.
“This outrageous attack and serious crime constitutes a flagrant violation of all laws and regulations,” the group said.
It is unclear why the organization waited more than a week to report the takeover, but it said that although it immediately asked authorities to intervene, no “concrete action” was taken to reclaim the site, “despite repeated promises to evacuate.”
He called on Palestinian authorities to take immediate action to ensure the facility is returned to their hands, to ensure the protection of patients and staff and to bring those responsible to justice “without any delay or leniency.”
He also called on countries supporting the ceasefire agreement to “vehemently intervene” to prevent actions that undermine humanitarian work.
The Israelis will say goodbye to the Thai hostage killed on October 7, 2023.
On Wednesday, Israelis were to bid farewell to a Thai farm worker whose body will be repatriated to his native Thailand later that day.
Sonthaya Okkharasri was killed during the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, and his body was kept in Gaza until it was returned last weekend.
In a statement, the families' headquarters for the return of abductees said a gathering would be held at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv to pay tribute to Okharasri, calling him “a devoted father and farmer who dreamed of starting his own farm.”
In the 2023 attack on Israel that started the war, Hamas-led militants killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapped 251 as hostages.
More than 68,000 Palestinians have died in the war between Israel and Hamas, according to Gaza's health ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its tally. The ministry maintains detailed casualty records that UN agencies and independent experts consider reliable. Israel disputes them without reporting its own losses.
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