ISRAEL returned the remains of 15 Palestinians to Gaza today in the latest step forward for the “ceasefire.”

A senior White House official met with Israeli leaders in Jerusalem today as the Israelis continued to attack targets in Gaza City and southern Lebanon.

Israel returned the bodies after the remains of a hostage was released on Sunday. With the latest exchange, only four bodies of hostages remained in Gaza.

The Gaza Health Ministry said that the Red Cross handed over the Palestinian bodies today, raising the total number received to 315.

For each Israeli hostage returned, Israel has been releasing the remains of 15 Palestinians.

Only 91 of the bodies returned so far have been identified, the ministry said. Forensic work is complicated by a lack of DNA testing kits in Gaza. The ministry posts photos of the remains online, in the hope that families will recognise them.

The handover came after Israel on Sunday confirmed it had received the remains of Hadar Goldin, a soldier killed in the Gaza Strip in 2014.

As the first stage of the agreement nears its end, United States President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem.

The prime minister’s office said that the two discussed disarming Hamas and demilitarising Gaza. They also agreed that the fate of trapped Hamas fighters will be made in collaboration with the Trump administration.

The al-Araby al-Jadeed news outlet reports that Hamas are holding talks with mediators “regarding hundreds of the group’s fighters trapped in underground tunnels in Rafah.”

Palestinian sources say the talks are focused on finding a “solution that guarantees that the fighters are allowed to remain in Gaza,” saying “the option to deport them overseas is not on the table at the moment.”

Meanwhile, Israel has continued to attack Gaza City as well as targets in southern Lebanon.

Two Palestinians, including a child, were killed by an Israeli drone attack east of Khan Younis in southern Gaza.

The Israeli army claimed the two “posed an immediate threat” to them.

Since the start of the deal that stopped the mass daily killings, more than 241 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza by the Israelis.

The Israelis also carried out another drone attack on southern Lebanon despite the ceasefire agreed since November 24 2024. The latest attack targeted open land near the town of al-Hamira.

While no casualties were immediately reported during that attack, one person was killed by an Israeli drone attack that hit a vehicle in southern Lebanon.