Hamas handed over the remains of two Israeli hostages late Wednesday—visual artist Inbar Haiman and Israel Defense Forces tracker Muhammad el-Atrash—marking the final known return of a female hostage under the current U.S.-brokered ceasefire.

The transfer, facilitated by the Red Cross, concludes a tense week of exchanges that saw 20 living captives freed but leaves 19 bodies still unaccounted for.

The caskets were retrieved in Gaza City and transported under IDF escort into Israel, where they were honored in a military ceremony before being taken to the Abu Kabir forensic institute in Tel Aviv. Israeli authorities later confirmed the identities: Haiman, 27, was abducted and killed during the October 7, 2023, Nova music festival attack; el-Atrash, 39, a father of 13 from Sa’wa, died defending the Nahal Oz military base.

Haiman’s remains were the last known female hostage body held in Gaza. Her death had been officially declared in December 2023. El-Atrash’s fate was confirmed through intelligence gathered in mid-2024. In a statement, the Prime Minister’s Office expressed national mourning and reaffirmed Israel’s commitment to recovering all hostages, living or deceased.

Hamas claimed it had returned all bodies currently accessible, citing the need for specialized equipment to retrieve others buried beneath rubble and collapsed tunnels. Mediators, including U.S. officials, acknowledged the logistical challenges, warning that further recoveries could take weeks. President Donald Trump described the process as “gruesome,” pledging continued support to ensure no one is left behind.

U.S. advisers defended Hamas’s compliance with the ceasefire’s first phase, noting that all living hostages had been returned as agreed. They revealed ongoing efforts to incentivize information-sharing from Gaza residents and proposed involving Turkish disaster response teams to assist in body recovery—pending Israeli approval.

However, tensions are rising. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has ordered contingency plans to resume military operations if Hamas fails to meet its obligations. Reports from Axios indicate internal Israeli frustration, with accusations that Hamas is “slow-walking” the process despite intelligence suggesting more bodies are retrievable. A U.S. official countered that while delays are expected, abandoning the deal would be premature.

Hamas’s military wing maintains that it has fulfilled its commitments under the truce’s initial phase, which included hostage exchanges and humanitarian aid access. Yet reports of executions of alleged collaborators in Gaza have drawn condemnation from U.S. Central Command and concern from international observers, including France.

The ceasefire is part of a broader framework outlined in Trump’s 20-point “Trump Peace Agreement,” signed in Egypt with backing from 59 nations. The plan envisions eventual demilitarization of Hamas and amnesty for fighters who disarm, though key issues such as governance and reconstruction remain unresolved.