🔗 Share this article Egyptian authorities along with International Committee of the Red Cross Join Search for Captive Remains in Gaza Strip International machinery enters into the Gaza territory Teams from Egypt and the ICRC have been authorized to search for the bodies of deceased hostages taken during the 7 October attacks, Israeli authorities have verified. The Israeli government stated that the crews have been permitted to search beyond the so-called "demarcation line" in the area under the control of military personnel in Gaza. Hamas has handed over 15 out of 28 hostages who lost their lives under the initial stage of a American-mediated truce agreement, which requires it to transfer all remains of captives. The organization stated it is now working together with officials in Egypt. The former US president has cautions the organization to begin returning the remains "quickly, or the other countries participating in this great peace will intervene". An Israeli spokesperson indicated the Egyptian team has been authorized to collaborate with the ICRC to locate the bodies, and would use excavator machines and vehicles for the search beyond the "demarcation line". The "demarcation line" marks the boundary running along the northern, southern and eastern of the Gaza territory that Israel pulled back to, as part of the first stage of the truce agreement. Previously, Israel has not authorized the access of such teams. Egypt, along with Qatar and Turkey, is a key signatory of the Trump-brokered Gaza peace plan, which was signed in the coastal city of Sharm el-Sheikh in recent weeks. The development will be welcomed by family members, desperate to give them a proper burial. The ICRC has already been deeply engaged in the return of hostages. Hamas does not transfer its detainees - living or deceased - directly to the IDF, but rather to the Red Cross, which in turn escorts them through Gaza and transfers them to the IDF. But the arrival of digging crews from Egypt inside the Gaza Strip is a recent development. After more than 24 months of intense bombardment by Israeli forces, the United Nations calculates that as much as eighty-four percent of the territory has been destroyed completely. The group claims it is doing its best to recover remains of captives, but it faces difficulty locating them under debris of buildings bombed out by the IDF in the region. It is now working in coordination with the officials in Egypt. On the weekend, an official representative said that Hamas was aware of where the remains were. "If Hamas made more of an effort, they would be able to retrieve the remains of our hostages," the representative commented. The former president posted on his social media account on the weekend that action would be implemented if the remains of the deceased hostages were not handed back promptly. "A portion of the remains are hard to reach, but others they can return now and, for some reason, they are not. Perhaps it has do with their disarming," he remarked. He added: "Let's see what they accomplish over the coming two days. I am watching this with great attention." Palestinian minors dying as they wait for Israeli authorities to enable relocations Rubio says many nations prepared to participate in the region's security force Recent photographs show demarcation zone deeper into the territory than anticipated On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the country would decide which foreign forces it would permit as part of a planned multinational contingent in Gaza to help secure the ceasefire under Trump's plan. "We are in command of our security, and we have also made it clear regarding international forces that Israel will determine which forces are unacceptable to us, and this is how we function and will proceed," he declared speaking at the beginning of a government session. On the end of the week, the American diplomat said "a lot of countries" had offered to be involved in the contingent - but noted Israel would have to be satisfied with those taking part. This seemed like a reference to the Turkish government, amid reports Israel had rejected the nation's participation. It was still uncertain, however, how such a force could be deployed without an understanding with Hamas. Israel launched a armed operation in Gaza in response to the incidents of October 7th, in which Hamas-led gunmen took the lives of about 1,200 individuals and captured 251 additional persons as captives. At least 68,519 have been killed in military actions in the region from that time, according to the territory's health authorities under the group's control.