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Units from Egyptian authorities and the ICRC have been authorized to locate the remains of deceased hostages captured during the October 7th incidents, Israeli authorities have verified.

The authorities in Israel stated that the crews have been permitted to operate beyond the referred to as "yellow line" in the area under the control of military personnel in Gaza.

Hamas has transferred fifteen out of twenty-eight deceased Israeli hostages under the initial stage of a US-brokered ceasefire deal, which requires it to hand over all hostage bodies. The organization said it is now working together with officials in Egypt.

The former US president has warned Hamas to begin returning the bodies "promptly, or the additional nations participating in this great peace will take action".

An official representative said the Egyptian team has been permitted to collaborate with the ICRC to locate the remains, and would use excavator machines and vehicles for the operation beyond the "demarcation line".

The "demarcation line" marks the boundary running along the north, southern and eastern of the Gaza territory that Israeli forces withdrew to, as part of the initial phase of the truce agreement.

Previously, Israel has not authorized the access of such teams.

The Egyptian government, along with Qatari officials and Turkey, is a key signatory of the mediated by Trump peace initiative for Gaza, which was signed in the coastal city of Sharm el-Sheikh earlier this month.

The news will be greeted positively by relatives, desperate to provide a dignified funeral.

The ICRC has already been heavily involved in the return of hostages.

Hamas does not transfer its captives - living or deceased - straight to the Israel Defense Forces, but instead to the Red Cross, which in turn escorts them through the territory and hands them on to the IDF.

But the arrival of digging crews from Egypt inside the Gaza territory is a recent development.

After more than two years of heavy shelling by Israel, the United Nations estimates that as much as 84% of the area has been destroyed completely.

Hamas claims it is making every effort to recover hostage bodies, but it encounters challenges locating them under debris of structures destroyed by the Israeli military in Gaza.

It is now coordinating with the Egyptian authorities.

On the weekend, an official representative said that Hamas was aware of where the remains were.

"If Hamas put in greater work, they would be able to recover the remains of our hostages," the spokesperson commented.

Trump shared on his Truth Social platform on Saturday that measures would be implemented if the remains of the hostages who died were not returned promptly.

"Some of the remains are difficult to access, but others they can return at present and, for some reason, they are not. Perhaps it has do with their demilitarization," he said.

Trump continued: "We will observe what they accomplish over the coming two days. I am monitoring the situation with great attention."

• Gaza minors dying as they wait for Israeli authorities to permit relocations
• The US Secretary of State states many nations willing to join the region's security force
• Recent photographs show Israeli control line further into the territory than expected

On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Israel would decide which foreign forces it would permit as part of a proposed multinational contingent in the region to help secure the ceasefire under the former president's initiative.

"We are in command of our security, and we have also stated explicitly regarding international forces that Israel will decide which units are not acceptable to us, and this is how we function and will proceed," he said speaking at the beginning of a government session.

On Friday, the American diplomat indicated "numerous nations" had offered to be part of the contingent - but noted Israel would have to be satisfied with those taking part.

This appeared to be a reference to Turkey, amid reports Israeli officials had rejected the nation's participation.

It remained unclear, however, how such a force could be deployed without an understanding with Hamas.

The Israeli military launched a military campaign in the territory in response to the 7 October 2023 attack, in which Hamas-led gunmen killed about twelve hundred people and captured two hundred fifty-one others as hostages.

At least sixty-eight thousand five hundred nineteen have been lost their lives in military actions in the region from that time, according to the area's health authorities under the group's control.