The BODY parts returned overnight by Hamas are not new remains but fragments of a hostage already buried almost two years ago, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.
Netanyahu condemned the act as a “clear violation” of the fragile ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.
He went on to say that he would summon senior security officials to determine Israel’s response.
The remains were identified as belonging to Ofir Tzarfati, who was kidnapped at the Nova music festival during the Hamas massacre of October 7, 2023.
Almost 400 people died and dozens were kidnapped at the festival alone.
In total, the attack left 1,200 Israelis dead – mostly civilians – and 251 hostages taken to Gaza.
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“After completing the identification process this morning, the remains returned last night were found to belong to fallen hostage Ofir Tzarfati, who was brought from Gaza in a military operation about two years ago,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement.
A Hamas official told Al Jazeera that the body had been found in the Tuffah neighborhood of Gaza City and handed over to the Red Cross at around 9 p.m.
However, Israeli troops operating in the area disputed the account, saying they saw militants carry out the recovery by placing the body in a freshly dug hole before contacting the Red Cross as if they had just located it.
Tzarfati was killed in captivity and his body was first recovered by Israeli forces in November 2023.
His family received additional remains in March 2024.
Two years later, they have been forced to relive their pain.
“This morning we were shown video footage of our beloved son’s remains being removed, buried and handed over to the Red Cross, an abhorrent manipulation designed to sabotage the agreement and undermine the effort to bring all the hostages home,” the family said.
“This is the third time we have been forced to open Ophir’s tomb and rebury our son,” they added, describing the ordeal as “a wound that constantly reopens, between memory and longing, between grief and mission.”
Netanyahu said the move “violates the ceasefire agreement.”
Israeli media reported that possible responses being discussed include stopping humanitarian aid to Gaza, expanding IDF control beyond the so-called “Yellow Line,” or launching targeted airstrikes against Hamas leaders.
The discovery comes as the October 10 truce hangs in the balance.
Under the terms of the agreement, Hamas must return all remains of Israeli hostages as soon as possible.
In return, Israel has so far repatriated 195 Palestinian bodies to Gaza, of which less than half have been identified.
On Monday, 41 unidentified bodies were buried in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza, as Israel held a funeral for Yossi Sharabi, another hostage whose remains were returned earlier this month.
Israeli officials say there are still 13 bodies held hostage in Gaza.
Hamas claims it cannot locate them amid the destruction, but Israel accuses the group of deliberate delay.
Over the weekend, Egyptian teams with heavy machinery entered Gaza to help locate the remaining bodies and continued their search on Monday.
Meanwhile, in the occupied West Bank, Israeli forces killed three Palestinian militants during a raid near Jenin on Tuesday.
Police said the men were shot after leaving a cave that was later destroyed in an airstrike.
Hamas identified two of the dead as members of its Qassam Brigades, while the third was described as a local commander.
Israel says its stepped-up raids are aimed at dismantling militant networks, but Palestinian officials and human rights groups say civilians have also been hit hardest.
Since the start of the war, the Israeli military says it has recovered the remains of 51 Gaza hostages.
In exchange for the return of living and dead captives, Israel has freed some 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, including 250 convicted attackers and many others held without charge.
According to the Gaza Health Ministry, more than 68,500 Palestinians have died since the conflict began.
The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants, although its figures are generally accepted by UN agencies and independent experts.
Israel disputes the figures but has not published its own count.
The latest exchange has further strained the already fragile truce.
Both senior Israeli officials and the Missing Families and Hostages Forum have urged Hamas to speed up the transfer of remains, accusing it of violating the agreement.
“Hamas knows exactly where each of the deceased hostages is being held,” the forum said.
“Two weeks have passed since the deadline set in the agreement for the return of the 48 hostages, but 13 remain held captive by Hamas.”
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“The families urge the government of Israel, the US administration and the mediators not to advance to the next phase of the agreement until Hamas meets all its obligations,” the statement added.
Hamas insists it remains committed to the ceasefire and says it is doing everything it can to locate the remaining bodies buried under the rubble of two years of war.
