U.S. officials -- including Vice President JD Vance, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner -- traveled to Israel this week for high-level meetings, discussing the next steps in the delicate ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
Israel has accused Hamas of violating the ceasefire deal by withholding the bodies of the remaining 13 deceased hostages thought to have died during or after the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023. Hamas has said the return of the remaining bodies "may take some time" due to the destruction.
Israel identifies 2nd hostage remains returned overnight
Israeli officials on Sunday said the second set of remains returned overnight by Hamas were those of Suntaya Akrasi, a Thai citizen, who was killed by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023.
"Suntaya, 30 years old at the time of his death, was abducted from the orchards of Kibbutz Be'eri," the Israel Defense Forces said on social media. "His death was pronounced on May 16th, 2024."
Hamas as of Sunday has handed over 12 sets of remains out of the 28 that had been in the militant group’s possession when the ceasefire came into effect, according to Israel.
Oct 19, 2025, 6:00 AM EDT
Israeli official accuses Hamas of attacks, 'bold violation' of ceasefire
Hamas has carried out "multiple attacks" against Israeli forces, an Israeli military official told ABC News,
"The terror organization Hamas carried out multiple attacks against Israeli forces beyond the yellow line," the official said. "The attacks included an RPG shot at a military force, and a sniper fire against a military force. Both of the incidents happened in an Israeli controlled area, east to the yellow line. This is a bold violation of the ceasefire."
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller and Somayeh Malekian
Oct 19, 2025, 5:23 AM EDT
Hamas 'rejects' US statement on potential ceasefire violations
Hamas officials said the militant group "rejects the allegations" made by the U.S. State Department, which warned Saturday of "credible reports" that Hamas may be violating the terms of its ceasefire with Israel.
A drone view shows people walking through a destroyed residential neighbourhood, following the withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the area, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, in Gaza City, Oct. 18, 2025.
Dawoud Abu Alkas/Reuters
Hamas in a statement called the allegations false and "Israeli propaganda."
It accused Israel of supporting criminal gangs that have wreaked havoc on Palestinian civilians, "spreading chaos and disrupting security."
-ABC News' Nasser Atta and Rashid Haddou
Oct 19, 2025, 2:46 AM EDT
Israel 'will not compromise' on return of all hostages, Netanyahu’s office says
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday said Israeli officials would not compromise on the transferring of remains of hostages taken by Hamas, saying it's seeking the return of "every last one of them."
"The Hamas terrorist organization is required to uphold its commitments to the mediators and return them as part of the implementation of the agreement," Netanyahu’s office said in a statement.
People attend a rally demanding the returning of the bodies of hostages kidnapped by Hamas who are still in Gaza Strip, at a plaza known as hostages square, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025.
Francisco Seco/AP
Israel "will not compromise" on their return, the office said, adding that it would "spare no effort until we return all of the fallen hostages, every last one of them."
Israeli officials on Sunday morning separately said they had identified one set of remains returned overnight. Another set of remains were in the process of being identified.
Prior to those two bodies being transferred, Hamas had handed over 10 sets of remains out of the 28 that had been in Hamas’ possession when the ceasefire came into effect, according to Israel. Another set of remains handed over did not match any of the missing hostages, Israel said.
Members of the Hamas militant group searching for bodies of the hostages in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025.
Jehad Alshrafi/AP
Hamas in a statement on Saturday said the recovery and handover of remains may be delayed if Israel does not reopen the Rafah crossing at the border between Gaza and Egypt.
"Specialized" equipment to locate remains, along with personnel who could examine and identify them, were being blocked from entry into Gaza, Hamas said.
