Tel Aviv/Gaza, 29 January 2026 (dpa/MIA) - Israel has transferred the remains of 15 Palestinians to the Gaza Strip.

The bodies were handed over by staff from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the organization confirmed on Thursday. Israeli sources also confirmed the transfer.

With this step, which followed the return of the last Israeli hostage's remains, the conditions for moving to the next phase of the Gaza peace plan have been met, the sources said.

US President Donald Trump's plan was secured in November through a resolution of the UN Security Council.

The overarching goal of the plan is a permanent end to the war between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist Hamas movement, as well as the reconstruction of the coastal strip, which has been largely destroyed over two years of war.

After the start of the ceasefire, Hamas released the last 20 living hostages, while in return, around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners were released by Israel.

Additionally, Hamas handed over a total of 28 hostage bodies. However, the transfer proceeded more slowly than agreed, taking more than three months instead of 72 hours.

Photo: archive