Trump hints at 'action' if Hamas doesn't return hostage bodies

The bodies of 13 deceased hostages are believed to still be in Gaza.

ByKevin Shalvey, Jon Haworth, Emily Shapiro, Nadine El-Bawab, and David Brennan
Last Updated: October 24, 2025, 10:52 AM EDT

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.

Key Headlines

Here's how the news is developing.
Oct 20, 2025, 1:08 PM EDT

Trump says admin taking 'a lot of steps' to maintain ceasefire

President Donald Trump on Monday was asked what his administration is doing to ensure the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas holds after a weekend of violence in Gaza.

"A lot of steps," Trump responded as he took questions from reporters during a bilateral meeting with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, though he didn't elaborate on what those steps were. "And right now, it's in the hands of others."

President Donald Trump speaks as he meets with Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese as Vice President JD Vance looks on in the Cabinet Room at the White House in Washington, October 20, 2025.
Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

White House special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner arrived in Israel on Monday to bolster the shaky agreement and try to continue implementation of the second phase of Trump's 20-point peace plan.

Oct 20, 2025, 12:08 PM EDT

Hamas to return a body to Israel today

Hamas will return a body of an “Israeli captive” at 8 p.m. local time, 1 p.m. ET on Monday, Hamas said.

The body was found in Gaza on Sunday, Hamas said. The body will be returned through the same procedure previous bodies have: by handing the deceased from Hamas to Red Cross officials to the Israel Defense Forces in Gaza, Hamas said.

Oct 20, 2025, 9:08 AM EDT

57 deaths at Gaza hospitals in the last day

Hospitals in Gaza recorded 57 Palestinian deaths over the last 24 hours due to strikes from the Israel Defense Forces, Gaza’s Hamas-run Ministry of Health said. Out of those 57 people, 45 were directly targeted by the strikes and 12 people were recovered from under the rubble.

Another 158 people were taken to hospitals in Gaza with injuries, the Ministry of Health said.

Oct 20, 2025, 6:38 AM EDT

Witkoff and Kushner arrive in Israel, sources say

United States Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and Senior Advisor to the U.S. President Jared Kushner have arrived in Israel, two sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.

-ABC News' Somayeh Malekian and Jordana Miller

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