Hamas has said two more bodies of Israeli hostages will be retuned tonight. Earlier, Gaza’s health ministry confirmed it has received more bodies of Palestinians. Follow the latest.
Wednesday 15 October 2025 18:50, UK
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Hamas’s armed winged has just put out a statement that is has decided to hand over the bodies of two more Israeli hostages tonight.
The group said it will take place at 10pm local time (8pm in the UK).
The funeral for hostage Daniel Peretz is currently under way in Jerusalem.
Peretz had been among the first four bodies to be returned to Israel under the ceasefire agreement on Monday.
He was an army captain, originally from South Africa, who was killed in the October 7 attacks.
Peretz is being laid to rest on Mount Herzl, Israel’s national cemetary. It is believed to be the second funeral of any of the deceased hostages who have been returned since Monday.
Ela Haimi, widow of dead hostage Tal Haimi, joined Sky News chief presenter Mark Austin tonight to discuss the ongoing release of the hostages’ bodies.
Her husband is among the 21 bodies still to be handed over by Hamas, as the returns process drags on longer than planned under the ceasefire agreement.
“I’m very tense and I’m waiting,” Haimi said, who gave birth to her husband’s baby after he was killed in the October 7 attacks.
She said the current situation of aggravated media attention while she’s waiting for progress on her husband’s return “feels like in a reality show – but the reality is my life”.
She said: “Every morning my kids are asking me, did their father a comeback, and I’m telling them, no, not yet, maybe tomorrow it’s so hard for them.”
Haimi fears her husband’s body may never be returned – watch her interview below…
The Swedish activist has shared details of the five days she spent in Israeli captivity after the military intercepted the Gaza-bound flotilla that she had joined.
In an interview with Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet, published today, Thunberg said she was “hit and kicked” by soldiers upon arrival in Israel.
“They ripped off my frog hat, threw it on the ground, stomped and kicked it, and kind of threw a tantrum,” Thunberg said, adding soldiers were taking pictures with her.
Some activists were later held in outdoor cages despite the heat, causing some of them to faint, she said. Thunberg also accused the guards of refusing them water and depriving prisoners of sleep.
She said previous reports that she was draped in an Israel flag were true. The interview includes images of Thunberg’s suitcases with the words ‘Whore Greta’ written on it, next to drawings of an Israeli flag and male genitalia, which she attributes to Israeli guards.
Thunberg had previously alleged she was tortured (which the Israeli government denies) but said she didn’t want to share details for now so as not divert attention from Gaza.
The Global Sumud Flotilla had carried aid for the territory, aiming to raise attention to Israel’s maritime blockade.
Israeli troops intercepted it before it reached the coast, arresting some 450 activists.
Watch the moment Thunberg was arrested on board the Global Sumud Flotilla…
An inter-Arab security force should be set up in Gaza within weeks to prevent Hamas from retaking control, Israel’s former prime minister Ehud Barak has told Sky News.
Asked by Sky News chief presenter Mark Austin if intervention was necessary to prevent Hamas from filling the current power vacuum in the territory, the 83-year-old said he believed a force was needed, but it should not be international.
“An inter-Arab force should be there in a few weeks, not several months,” he said, warning the militant group’s readiness to give up its arms will decrease over time.
Barak, who served as prime minister from 1999 to 2001, also said the “only condition for success” in the ceasefire plan for Gaza was the “determination” of Donald Trump.
He said there were concerns the US president “might lose his attention to the issue” and his plan to bring the war to a conclusion “will take time”.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum has shared the full eulogy that the father of Guy Illouz gave today at his son’s funeral, one of the four dead hostages released on Monday.
It’s believed to have been the first funeral for any of the deceased hostages returned under the ceasefire agreement.
“It’s hard for me to see or imagine the future without you,” Michel Illouz said.
“They snatched you from me – they murdered you – they kidnapped me and stole my identity and murdered my soul and heart.”
He added: “I’ll miss so much travelling with you through this land, feeling you, hearing your music, sitting in the hills and lighting the burner to make coffee the way only you knew how.”
Illouz shared the heartbreaking moment when he was asked to identify his son’s body: “They removed the white sheet, and the first thing I saw was that smile of yours, that optimism, that serenity and nobility that so characterised you.
“I touched you, tried to smell you, caressed every bone in your body. I saw you, I was alone with you, and yes, I felt with absolute certainty that it was you.”
He also described scenes from his son’s captivity: when his kidnappers said they had a surprise for him, he had at first hoped it was tea with mint.
Instead, it was Maya Regev, a hostage who was freed in November 2023 and was the last person to see Guy Illouz alive.
Michel Illouz ended his eulogy with the words: “I love you, my Guyshuk, my beloved firstborn son.”
It’s quite the week for Israel’s prime minister: on Monday, he celebrated the release of the remaining living hostages alongside Donald Trump, a step towards ending the two-year war in Gaza.
Today, he had to appear before a Tel Aviv district court to testify in his own corruption trial, local media reported.
Ministers and politicians from Netanyahu’s Likud party reportedly attended the session to support the prime minister.
During his speech at the Knesset, Trump had notably suggested Israeli president Isaac Herzog pardon Netanyahu.
What is Netanyahu’s trial about?
The trial combines three separate main cases against Netanyahu, commonly identified by the designation given to them by police and prosecutors.
He is the first incumbent prime minister to take the stand as a criminal defendant in Israel’s history.
He denies wrongdoing, saying he is the victim of a “witch hunt”.
Here’s a rundown of Netanyahu’s three indictments:
Israel is expecting Hamas to return more bodies of deceased hostages tonight, according Israeli media.
The Qatari al Arabi channel also reports Hamas will release five more bodies tonight.
So far, the group has released eight bodies under the ceasefire agreement – four on Monday and four yesterday.
While four bodies were handed over, Israel said today that one of them does not match any hostage, leaving the remains of 21 dead hostages still to be released, according to their tallies.
The hostage releases have resonated even far from the region, as some 140 hostages were believed to have held foreign passports from 25 different countries, according to the Israeli government.
Among them were nationals from countries as far away as Argentina and Sri Lanka.
A Nepali national was among the bodies released on Monday: Bipin Joshi, who was 23 at the time of the attack.
He had been an agriculture student at the Kibbutz Alumim, one of 16 other Nepalis staying there when it came under attack, 10 of whom were killed.
On Monday, a vigil was held for Joshi at the Nepali capital, Kathmandu.
“We strongly urge Hamas to immediately suspend violence and shooting innocent Palestinian civilians in Gaza,” Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of US forces in the Middle East, said.
His order applied to both Hamas-held parts of Gaza and those still occupied by Israeli troops, he added.
This comes after reports that Hamas fighters clashed with militias in Gaza since Israel partially withdrew its troops on Friday and Israeli hostages and Palestinians prisoners were exchanged on Monday.
Hamas also executed men that it accused of collaborating with Israel, according to officials.
Donald Trump has said the clashes left him unbothered and did not affect his peace plan.
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