Red Crescent vehicles and refrigerated trucks, transporting the bodies of 45 Palestinians that had been in Israeli custody, arrive at the Nasser hospital in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip. AFP
"ALL TWENTY HOSTAGES ARE BACK AND FEELING AS GOOD AS CAN BE EXPECTED. A big burden has been lifted, but the job IS NOT DONE," Trump said on his Truth Social network.
"THE DEAD HAVE NOT BEEN RETURNED, AS PROMISED! Phase Two begins right NOW!!!"
Trump's post came just hours after he returned from a lightning trip to Israel and Egypt.
Trump attended the Sharm El-Sheikh Summit for Peace, on Sunday, as part of a joint Egyptian-American initiative to consolidate peace in the Middle East and build on the Gaza ceasefire agreement signed on 9 October 2025
The US leader had proclaimed a "historic dawn of a new Middle East" during his visit, during which he and regional leaders signed a declaration meant to cement the ceasefire in Gaza.
Under the deal, the remaining 20 live captives seized during Hamas's October 7, 2023, offensive on Israel were freed shortly before Trump arrived in Israel.
But while Hamas returned four bodies on Monday, the Palestinian armed group is still holding the bodies of 24 captives, which are expected to be returned under the terms of the ceasefire agreement.
A Gaza hospital said it had received the bodies of 45 Palestinians that had been handed back by Israel, also as part of the deal to end the war.
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