IDF: Of 8 Remains We've Received, One Wasn't a Hostage

A body returned to Israel by Hamas under President Trump's ceasefire deal is not that of any known hostage, the Israeli military said Wednesday. The IDF said forensic tests confirmed the body delivered Tuesday does not match any of the 28 hostages believed to have died in Gaza. The bodies of three hostages—Tamir Nimrodi, Eitan Levy, and Uriel Baruch—were, however, identified among those returned this week. In total, seven of the 28 deceased hostages' remains have been sent back since Monday, according to the Hostages Families Forum. NBC News reports Hamas hasn't responded to the IDF's statement regarding the unidentified body.

The AP separately reports that forensic experts in Gaza on Wednesday began the process of identifying the remains of 45 Palestinians who were handed over to the Red Cross by Israel on Tuesday without identification. It's not yet known if the bodies were people who died in Israeli prisons or if they were bodies removed from Gaza by Israeli troops. The Guardian explains that the Israeli military exhumed bodies in Gaza while looking for the remains of hostages.