GAZA CITY, Palestine: The death toll in Gaza has risen to at least 67,938 since Israel began its military campaign in October 2023, according to the Palestinian enclave’s health ministry on Wednesday.
The ministry said that 25 bodies, including 16 newly recovered and one person who succumbed to wounds, were brought to Gaza’s hospitals in the past 24 hours, along with 35 injured people.
The ministry added that “a number of victims remain under the rubble” as ambulance and civil defence teams are still unable to reach several areas due to ongoing access constraints.
Meanwhile, medical sources cited by Al Jazeera said that some of the Palestinian bodies handed over by Israeli forces were blindfolded and handcuffed, showing signs of possible field executions.
The same sources said tank tracks were visible on some corpses, suggesting that they may have been run over by Israeli military vehicles.
The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) said on Tuesday that the fourth body handed over by Hamas did not match any of the known Israeli captives, following examination at the National Institute of Forensic Medicine.
“Hamas is required to make all necessary efforts to return the deceased hostages,” the Israeli army said in a statement posted on X.
🟡Following the completion of examinations at the National Institute of Forensic Medicine, the fourth body handed over to Israel by Hamas does not match any of the hostages.
Hamas is required to make all necessary efforts to return the deceased hostages.
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) October 15, 2025
Palestinian Authority ready to operate Rafah crossing
The Palestinian Authority (PA) has expressed readiness to take control of the Rafah crossing, a key humanitarian route between Egypt and Gaza.
“Now we are ready to engage again, and we have notified all parties that we are ready to operate the Rafah crossing,” said Mohammad Shtayyeh, special envoy to President Mahmoud Abbas.
Israel, meanwhile, delayed the entry of aid into Gaza on Tuesday and kept borders closed, with Israeli officials citing Hamas’s slow handover of the bodies of deceased hostages.
Three Israeli officials said that plans to reopen the Rafah crossing had been postponed at least until Wednesday.
Aid and hostage exchanges
Under the ongoing US-brokered ceasefire, Hamas and Israel have exchanged hostages and prisoners. On Monday, all 20 living Israeli hostages were released in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.
Hamas has handed over four bodies of deceased hostages, leaving 23 still unaccounted for, according to Israeli officials.
UNICEF spokesperson Tess Ingram said aid deliveries to Gaza now include tents, tarpaulins, winter clothing and hygiene kits but called for a “significant increase” in humanitarian assistance in the coming days.
According to Israel’s public broadcaster KAN, the Rafah crossing is expected to reopen on Wednesday, with 600 trucks of humanitarian supplies scheduled to enter Gaza. The decision reportedly followed Hamas’s handover of the latest bodies under the ceasefire terms.
The ceasefire has halted nearly two years of devastating Israeli bombardment campaign since October 2023.
Gaza’s infrastructure has been left in ruins, with widespread famine reported by international monitors.
Gaza’s Civil Defence Service said 250 bodies had been recovered since the truce began, while thousands more remain buried under the rubble.
Despite the fragile truce, tensions remain high, and aid agencies warn that sustainable peace and recovery in Gaza will depend on both sides adhering to the ceasefire and ensuring the unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance.
