Israeli decision regarding search operations for prisoners in areas controlled by the army in Gaza

The Hebrew broadcasting authority revealed today, Tuesday, an Israeli decision made by Benjamin Netanyahu's government regarding the search missions for Israeli prisoners in areas controlled by the occupation army in the Gaza Strip.

The authority stated that "Israel has decided to stop Hamas's field tours with the Red Cross in the areas under its control in Gaza."

This comes following the delivery by the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, on Monday evening, of the remains of a new Israeli prisoner through Red Cross teams, bringing the number of bodies received by Tel Aviv to 17. However, Hebrew media reported on Tuesday that after examining the body, it was found not to belong to any of the remaining Israeli prisoners in Gaza, but rather the remains of a former Israeli prisoner who had been buried.

The operations of delivering the remains of Israeli prisoners fall under the exchange deal and the first phase of the ceasefire agreement, which came into effect on October 10 of this month.

Hamas released under the deal 20 living Israeli prisoners and the remains of 17 prisoners out of 28, most of whom are Israelis, but Tel Aviv claims that one of the received bodies does not match any of its prisoners.

This comes at a time when there are 9,500 missing Palestinians killed by the Israeli occupation army, and their bodies remain under the rubble, according to data from the government media office in Gaza.

Hamas says it seeks to "close the file" and needs time, advanced equipment, and heavy machinery to retrieve the remaining bodies.

Last Tuesday, U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance highlighted in a press conference the difficulties facing the process of retrieving the bodies of Israeli prisoners.

Vance said, "Some of them (the deceased prisoners) are buried under thousands of kilograms of rubble, and others' locations are unknown. We must be patient; it will take some time."

He added, "I will not set a specific deadline because some issues are complex and unpredictable."

More than 10,000 Palestinian prisoners, including children and women, are held in occupation prisons, suffering from torture, starvation, and medical neglect, with many reported dead, according to Palestinian and Israeli human rights and media reports.

The "Hamas" movement and the Israeli occupation reached an agreement to stop the genocide war on Gaza and release living and deceased Israeli prisoners, in addition to 1,968 Palestinian prisoners, based on a plan put forth by U.S. President Donald Trump.

This war, initiated by the occupation army with U.S. support on October 8, 2023, has resulted in the martyrdom of 68,527 Palestinians and the injury of 170,395, most of whom are children and women, with destruction affecting 90 percent of the civilian infrastructure in the sector.