File Photo: Hamas fighters ahead of a handover of captives. AP
Hamas's announcement came minutes after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the military to carry out intense strikes on the Gaza Strip.
"We will postpone the handover that was scheduled for today due to the occupation's violations," the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades said in a statement, adding that any Israeli "escalation will hinder the search, excavation, and recovery of the bodies".
Earlier on Tuesday, the group said on its Telegram channel, "We will hand over the body of an Israeli captive that was recently found in one of the tunnel routes in the Gaza Strip at 8:00 pm (1800 GMT) Gaza time."
Hamas handed over late on Monday what it said was the 16th of 28 captive bodies it had agreed to return under the US-brokered ceasefire deal, which came into effect on October 10.
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