Hamas says all reachable hostage bodies recovered amid Israel threat to resume Gaza fighting

Hamas says it needs specialist equipment to recover remaining bodies as Israel’s defence minister threatens to resume fighting

Israeli soldiers carry the coffin of slain hostage Captain Daniel Peretz during his funeral at Mt. Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem, Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2025. Picture: AP Photo/Francisco Seco

Israel has threatened to resume fighting in Gaza after Hamas announced that it could not return any further remains of deceased Israeli hostages without specialist recovery equipment that is needed to retrieve the rest from the ruins of the devastated territory.

The threat from Israel Katz, the defence minister, came after Hamas handed over the remains of two further bodies late on Wednesday, bringing the total of known deceased hostages returned by Hamas to nine – along with a tenth body that Israel said was not that of a former hostage.