The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) assisted in the transfer of the remains of 15 Palestinians to the Gaza Strip after the return of the remains of Ran Gvili, the last Gaza hostage, the Red Cross announced on Thursday.
This marked the completion of a months-long operation to assist in implementing the hostage return required by the ceasefire agreement.
The operation began in October with the release and return of 20 living hostages in exchange for 1,808 Palestinian prisoners, after which the ICRC assisted with the return of the deceased, including 27 out of 28 hostages and 360 Palestinians.
'We hope families can now mourn fully'
“We feel relief that we helped reunite families with their loved ones. For the families whose loved ones did not return alive, we hope they can now mourn fully,” said the ICRC’s head of delegation in Israel and the occupied territories, Julien Raison.
Raison also emphasized the importance of the Rafah crossing, saying it "has a significant role in addressing the urgent needs of the population. The ability to bring in larger quantities of essential special equipment for reconstruction work and also to allow for dignified identification and recovery of remains is critical in this sense.”
St.-Sgt.-Maj. Ran Gvili's remains were recovered on Monday in the Shejaia neighborhood in northern Gaza, and he was buried in his hometown of Meitar on Wednesday.