The bodies of 13 deceased hostages are believed to still be in Gaza.
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.
Two coffins have been transferred to the Red Cross and are on their way to the Israel Defense Forces and Israeli Security Agency members in Gaza, the IDF said.
The IDF and ISA said Hamas is required to uphold the agreement and take the necessary steps to return all the hostages.
-ABC News' Dana Savir
The Red Cross is on its way to the meeting point in northern Gaza to receive “several coffins of deceased hostages,” the IDF said in a statement.
“According to information received, the Red Cross is on its way to the meeting point in the northern Gaza Strip, where several coffins of deceased hostages will be transferred into its custody,” the IDF said.
It is unclear how many coffins will be transferred to the Red Cross at this time. Hamas has not specified how many will be handed over.
Hamas separately put out a statement saying they have “adhered to the agreement,” and “handed over all of its living prisoners and any bodies it could reach.”
“The remaining bodies require significant effort and special equipment to search for and retrieve, and we are making a great effort to close this file,” Hamas said in the statement.
-ABC News' Anna Burd
The bodies of three hostages returned to Israel on Tuesday have been identified as 20-year-old Tamir Nimrodi, 53-year-old Eitan Levi and 35-year-old Uriel Baruch, according to Israel.
In total, seven bodies of hostages have been returned to Israel. It is believed that there are 21 bodies of hostages still in Gaza at this time. One of the bodies handed over to Israel did not match any of the hostages, according to Israel.
Nimrodi was "kidnapped from a base in the Gaza envelope where he served as an Education NCO. He had managed to serve ten months until his kidnapping. During his military service he felt he had found his calling and was even interviewed for officer training a week before his kidnapping," according to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.
Levi "was listed as missing for over 40 days until he was declared a hostage, and after 62 days the army officially informed the family that Eitan is considered a deceased hostage held in Gaza. He was kidnapped while driving a friend to Kibbutz Be’eri during the Hamas attack," according to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.
Baruch worked in building materials. "After 172 days without a sign of life, his family was informed that Uriel had been murdered on October 7 and his body was kidnapped to Gaza. He left behind his wife Racheli, two children, his parents, and three siblings," according to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.
Israel is preparing to receive the remains of more hostages on Wednesday, two sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.
The sources did not say how many bodies Israel is expecting to receive.
-ABC News' Jordana Miller and Dana Savir
