Hamas, Islamic Jihad sources say to give Israel sample from body found in Gaza
Officials from Hamas and Islamic Jihad told AFP the two Palestinian militant groups would on Wednesday send to Israel a sample from a body recovered in the Gaza Strip.
A Hamas official said a team from the two groups' armed wings "found remains that are possibly those of an Israeli hostage" under the rubble in Beit Lahia in northern Gaza, and that the Red Cross would transfer a sample to the Israeli side for examination.
An Islamic Jihad official confirmed the same information.
Earlier on Wednesday, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said forensic tests showed the remains retrieved from Gaza the day before were "not linked" to the last two dead hostages held in the Palestinian territory.
Israeli police said on Tuesday they had received the presumed remains of one of the remaining hostages and escorted what they called "the coffin of the fallen hostage" to the forensic centre.
Under the first phase of the fragile US-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, militants were due to return all 48 hostages they held captive, 20 of whom were still alive.
All but the bodies of two hostages -- Israeli Ran Gvili and Thai national Sudthisak Rinthalak -- have since been handed over, but Israel has accused the Palestinian militants of dragging their feet on returning remains.
Hamas has blamed difficulties in finding the remains beneath the sea of rubble created by the two-year war with Israel.
The ceasefire which came into effect on October 10 remains fragile, with Israel and Hamas accusing each other of violating the terms, while the Gaza Strip remains in a deep humanitarian crisis.
Under the first phase of the deal, Palestinian militants have handed over the last 20 living hostages, and so far the remains of 26 out of 28 deceased ones.
In exchange, Israel has released nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners in its custody and returned the bodies of hundreds of dead Palestinians.
Source: Agence France Presse
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