Cairo: EgyPulse – News Desk
The United States special envoy Steve Witkoff said on Friday he is ‘confident’ that all the remains of Israeli detainees from the Gaza Strip will be returned, according to al Qahera news channel. “We’ve gotten 10 back and we will pursue the return of the balance of the deceased until they all will come home and I’m confident that it will happen,” Witkoff said.
Witkoff stated that the United States is working to ensure the return of all the remains of those held captive from the Gaza Strip, noting that the transitional phase in Gaza must include support for jobs and the education sector. Witkoff explained that Hamas must definitively disarm, emphasizing that the movement has no future in Gaza.
On Thursday, Hamas announced that it has fulfilled its commitment to the ceasefire agreement by handing over all the living Israeli prisoners in the movement’s custody, as well as all the corpses it could access. As for the remaining corpses, it requires extensive efforts and special equipment for their retrieval and extraction, the movement added. “We are exerting great efforts in order to close this file,” it continued.
A ceasefire in Gaza strip between Hamas and Israel took effect on Friday and all 20 living captives and some of the deceased, who had been held in Gaza since October 2023, were released this week as Hamas and Israel approved the initial phase of the deal. In comments on Wednesday, US President Donald Trump said if Hamas did not disarm and hand down its weapons, the US will disarm it. “They know that we are not playing games,” he added.
