Israel confirmed on Thursday that Hamas has returned the body of Thai national Sudthisak Rinthalak, leaving the remains of one hostage unaccounted for in Gaza.
Rinthalak worked in a farming community close to the border when he was killed by Palestinian militants during the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7th, 2023, and taken to Gaza.
A spokesperson for Thailand’s foreign ministry thanked the Israeli government for the assistance that led to the return of all 31 Thai nationals who were among the 251 people taken hostage during the 7th October attack. Another 39 Thai nationals were among the 1,200 people killed that day.
Israeli police officer Ran Gvili is the last deceased hostage in captivity in Gaza, where more than 70,000 people have been killed since the start of the war.
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Israel has said the return of all hostages is a key condition of the Gaza ceasefire moving to its second phase.
They were supposed to be returned by Hamas within 72 hours of the signing of US president Donald Trump’s ceasefire agreement on October 10th.
Militant groups in Gaza claimed it was difficult to locate all of the hostage’s bodies as some were buried under rubble.
Violence has tailed off since the ceasefire but Israel has continued to strike Gaza and conduct demolitions against what it says is Hamas infrastructure. Hamas and Israel have traded blame for violating the agreement.
Medics at Al-Kuwaiti Hospital in Khan Younis said they recovered the bodies of five Palestinians, including two children, after an Israeli missile attack on Wednesday evening at an encampment in western Khan Younis.
The Israeli military said its strike targeted a “Hamas terrorist”, without providing further details. It said the attack came in response to an assault on its troops in Rafah earlier on Wednesday that wounded five soldiers. The Israeli military said Hamas militants emerged from tunnels in Rafah, in an area that remains under Israeli military control.
Health officials at Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza said earlier on Wednesday that two Palestinians were killed by Israeli gunfire in the Zeitoun suburb of Gaza City. The Israeli military said it was looking into the report.
More than 350 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas went into effect, Gaza health authorities say. Palestinian militants killed three Israeli soldiers during this time, Israeli authorities said.
Despite the clashes, Mr Trump has said the ceasefire will progress to the next phase. Washington plans to announce in the coming weeks the members of the Palestinian committee tasked with temporarily administering Gaza, and the members of the Board of Peace that will supervise it.
The committee of Palestinian technocrats is expected to consist of Gazans who will administer daily life in the Strip until power is handed over to a reformed Palestinian Authority (PA).
Mr Netanyahu said on Thursday that Israel rejects a role for the PA in postwar Gaza governance. “There are Palestinians inside Gaza who are currently fighting Hamas,” he told New York Times journalist Andrew Sorkin. “Enough of the dictatorship of terror. They want to control their own destiny, and I think we should give them a chance.”
However, Israeli attempts to impose an alternative to Hamas in Gaza received a significant setback on Thursday with the news that militia leader Yasser Abu Shabab was killed in a family feud.
Mr Abu Shabab led the largest Gaza militia, called the Popular Forces, which was funded and supported by Israel. It operated in Rafah and other areas of southern Gaza and opposed Hamas. Although Hamas had ordered its fighters to kill or capture him, local residents reported that he died in a gunfight between family members who were not connected to Hamas.
Differences continue between Israel and Egypt over the reopening of the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt.
Israel announced on Wednesday that the crossing would open within days but only in one direction- for Palestinians wishing to leave the coastal enclave.
But Cairo insists the crossing must be open in both directions and operated on the Gaza side by the PA under the supervision of the European Union Border Assistance Mission.
An Egyptian official described the Israeli announcement as a “bluff aimed at appeasing the extremist elements of the Israeli government.” – Additional reporting Reuters
