Trump hints at 'action' if Hamas doesn't return hostage bodies
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.
Key Headlines
- Egyptian resources deployed in Gaza to help locate, recover Israeli hostage remains
- Netanyahu says Israel, not US, will decide security policy
- Trump hints at 'action' if Hamas doesn't return hostage bodies 'quickly’
- Rubio says West Bank annexation would 'threaten this whole process'
- Aid allowed into Gaza is still falling short of what is needed, WHO head says
Vance arrives in Israel
U.S. Vice President JD Vance arrived in Israel on Tuesday afternoon local time.
Vance and second lady Usha Vance landed at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv a day after the arrival of two of U.S. President Donald Trump's trusted advisers -- Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
The three are expected to work with Israeli officials to "continue the Trump Administration's work on the historic Gaza Peace Deal," according to the White House.
-ABC News' Somayeh Malekian
IDF identifies body of a sergeant major killed on Oct. 7
Israel Defense Forces representatives said they have informed the family of abducted Sgt. Maj. Tal Haimi that his body has been returned from Hamas for burial.
The identification of his body was made by the National Center for Forensic Medicine in collaboration with the Israel Police and the Military Rabbinate.
The IDF said Sgt. Maj. Tal Haimi, commander of the alert squad at Nir Yitzhak, died in battle while defending the kibbutz on the morning of Oct. 7, 2023, and his body was abducted by Hamas.
Haimi, aged 41 at the time of his death, was declared dead in December 2023. He leaves behind a wife, four children, a father and a sister, according to the IDF.
-ABC News' Will Gretsky
Vance heading to Israel shortly
Vice President JD Vance and second lady Usha Vance will "depart shortly for Israel," according to a spokesman for Vance.
Special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump's son-in-law and businessman Jared Kushner arrived in Israel on Monday morning to bolster the ceasefire agreement and to continue implementation of the second phase of Trump's 20-point Gaza plan.
Vance acknowledged the negotiations are going to be "complicated," and U.S. officials have urged caution in recent days, suggesting the next phase will play out in several weeks and months to come.
Hamas says they need more equipment to retrieve remaining bodies
A Hamas spokesperson said that the destruction in Gaza is delaying their ability to hand over the remaining Israeli hostage bodies, and said they will need more equipment to retrieve them.
The spokesperson also accused the Israelis of violating the ceasefire agreement.
-ABC News’ Will Gretsky