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Remains of American Israeli hostage among 3 bodies returned by Hamas, IDF says

PHOTO: Omer Neutra, a soldier and American Israeli hostage who was kidnapped in the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas, is pictured in this undated handout photo.
2:59
Bring Them Home Now via Reuters
Trump 'really leaning into' peace deal moving forward in Gaza: Former DHS official
By David Brennan, Megan Forrester, Nadine El-Bawab
Last Updated: November 3, 2025, 8:12 AM

U.S. President Donald Trump pressed Hamas to act faster in returning the bodies of deceased hostages amid a delicate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

Israel has accused Hamas of violating the ceasefire deal by withholding the bodies of the remaining 13 deceased hostages thought to have died during or after the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023.

Hamas has said the return of the remaining bodies "may take some time" due to the destruction wrought in Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday instructed the country's military to "carry out powerful strikes in Gaza," a statement from his office said, in response to alleged ceasefire violations by Hamas.

The Israel Defense Forces said on Wednesday they had resumed the ceasefire.

Key Headlines

  • Body of American Israeli hostage returned by Hamas
  • 30 bodies returned to Gaza, ICRC says
  • More than 200 killed since Gaza ceasefire went into effect: Doctors Without Borders
  • IDF says it resumed Gaza ceasefire after strikes
Here's how the news is developing.

Nov 03, 2025 8:12 AM

Body of American Israeli hostage returned by Hamas

The body of American Israeli hostage Omer Neutra has been returned to Israel, Israeli officials said, as they identified each of the three sets of remains released by Hamas overnight.

PHOTO: Omer Neutra, a soldier and American Israeli hostage who was kidnapped in the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas, is pictured in this undated handout photo.
Bring Them Home Now via Reuters
Omer Neutra, a soldier and American Israeli hostage who was kidnapped in the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas, is pictured in this undated handout photo.
Bring Them Home Now via Reuters
'They're playing games': Mother of deceased American hostage blasts Hamas for 'breach'

All three were soldiers killed in the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks, whose bodies were taken into Gaza, according to the Israel Defense Forces.

The remains of Neutra, a captain, were returned along with those of Col. Assaf Hamami and Staff Sgt. Oz Daniel, the IDF said in a statement.

-ABC News’ Guy Davies


Nov 03, 2025 8:12 AM

Israel confirms it received 3 bodies from Gaza

Israel said that it received three bodies from Gaza via the Red Cross on Sunday.

The remains will transferred to the Ministry of Health's National Center for Forensic Medicine to confirm their identities, according to a statement Sunday from the Israeli prime minister's office, after which the families will be informed.

Prior to this transfer, there were 11 remaining hostage bodies in Gaza, including two Americans.

-ABC News' Jordana Miller


Nov 03, 2025 8:12 AM

3 bodies transferred to Israeli authorities by the Red Cross: ICRC

The International Committee of the Red Cross facilitated the transfer of three bodies to Israeli authorities on Friday, the ICRC said in a statement.

The bodies will be taken to Israel for identification.

-ABC News' Ellie Kaufman



Oct 31, 2025 4:45 PM

30 bodies returned to Gaza, ICRC says

A further 30 bodies were transferred from Israeli authorities to authorities in Gaza via the International Committee of the Red Cross, the organization said in a statement on Friday.

PHOTO: Red Cross transports the body of a deceased hostage in Deir Al-Balah, in the central Gaza Strip, October 30, 2025.
Ramadan Abed/Reuters
Red Cross transports the body of a deceased hostage in Deir Al-Balah, in the central Gaza Strip, October 30, 2025.
Ramadan Abed/Reuters

This return of bodies is part of the ongoing ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.

Including this transfer, Israel has returned 225 bodies to Gaza since the ceasefire began on Oct. 10, the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health said.

"Local health and forensic authorities are responsible for taking all possible measures to identify the remains of those deceased. Local health authorities in Gaza have confirmed the number of deceased received today is 30," the ICRC said.

-ABC News' Diaa Ostaz and Sami Zyara


Oct 28, 2025 7:02 PM

Explosions heard in Gaza after Netanyahu orders strikes

Two explosions were heard coming from the eastern areas of Deir al Balah in the middle of the Gaza Strip in the past hour. ABC News does not know the source of these explosions at this time.

There has been no official word from either party -- Israel or Hamas -- on any action on the ground in Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that strikes would resume on Gaza earlier on Tuesday.

Israel decided to carry out strikes in Gaza because of an attack on Israel Defense Forces troops in the IDF-controlled area of Gaza, east of the yellow line, on Tuesday, and for "violating the agreement," to return the remains of all the dead hostages still being held in Gaza, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement Tuesday.

PHOTO: Hamas militants carry a white bag believed to contain a body, after retrieving it from a tunnel during a search for the remains of hostages in Hamad City, Khan Younis, in southern Gaza, Oct. 28, 2025.
Jehad Alshrafi/AP
Hamas militants carry a white bag believed to contain a body, after retrieving it from a tunnel during a search for the remains of hostages in Hamad City, Khan Younis, in southern Gaza, Oct. 28, 2025.
Jehad Alshrafi/AP

"The attack on IDF soldiers in Gaza today by the Hamas terrorist organization is crossing a bright red line to which the IDF will respond with great force," Katz said in the statement, originally in Hebrew.

"Hamas will pay with compound interest for attacking the soldiers and violating the agreement to return the fallen hostages," he added.

As a part of the ceasefire deal, the IDF withdrew to an established yellow line in Gaza. IDF troops control parts of Gaza east of the yellow line -- at these borders, the IDF still controls more than 50% of Gaza.

Hamas attacked IDF troops in this area of Gaza on Tuesday, violating of the ceasefire agreement, two Israeli officials told ABC News.

Israeli authorities were also particularly aggravated after the remains returned by Hamas via the Red Cross on Monday night were identified as a hostage whose remains had previously been found in Gaza by IDF troops, one Israeli military official said.

The military official said one of the IDF’s surveillance cameras captured footage they say shows Hamas staging the discovery of a body in Gaza in front of the Red Cross on Monday.

-ABC News’ Diaa Ostaz and Jordana Miller


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