Israel to restrict aid into Gaza; Hamas releases bodies of 4 captives

Hamas has handed over the bodies of four more Israelis to the Red Cross, bringing the number of released deceased captives to eight.

Israel says it will only allow half the agreed number of aid trucks into Gaza and has delayed the opening of the Rafah Crossing, citing the slow release of the dead captives.

Some 20 bodies are still in Gaza.

We are hearing confirmation that the political echelon, which had really done what is viewed largely as a stunt, is backing down.

Let’s just remind our readers that the agreement does not stipulate that the return of all 28 bodies had to be done within that 72 hour window that was applicable to the living captives.

There was an admission, a recognition of the difficulty of retrieving the bodies as early as January.

The head of the Mossad has met with the families of the captives and even discussed that so long before the agreement was reached.

It’s not clear what role the mediators played in that, but according to the Israeli broadcasting authority and other media outlets in Israel, the Israeli government seems to have back down from its earlier communication with the United Nations about halving the amount of trucks and about not allowing the Rafah crossing to open.

And of course, the Rafah crossing is essential to allowing medical evacuation of thousands of Palestinians who need a treatment outside of Gaza.

Al Jazeera