Israel confirmed on October 15th, 2025, that a body returned by Hamas last night was not an Israeli hostage, identifying the individual as a West Bank Palestinian man. This development follows Hamas's claim that the returned body belonged to an Israeli soldier captured in Jabalia in May 2024, a claim the Israeli military previously denied. The body has been identified by Palestinian media as Khalil Dawas, a resident of the Aqabat Jabr camp near Jericho, who had been previously detained by Israel. The Kan public broadcaster reported, without citing sources, that Dawas had assisted Israeli security forces in tunnel searches and was killed by Hamas "a year and a half ago." Earlier, Hamas had released a video showing a bloodied individual and images of military gear not typically used by the Israeli military. Officially, Israel stated the body returned did not belong to any hostage. The reported use of detained Palestinians to search buildings and tunnels before Israeli troops is a practice that is officially prohibited by the IDF, though investigations into such cases have been opened. This situation arises amid ongoing disputes over the return of bodies and ongoing negotiations.
