Mother of slain hostage returned from Gaza calls to hold off on next phase of ceasefire until all bodies handed over

Yael Adar, whose son Tamir’s remains were returned by Hamas last week as part of the Gaza ceasefire, says Israel “must not proceed to the next phase of the agreement before the final hostage is returned.”

The remains of 11 deceased hostages are still held in Gaza, including a soldier killed fighting in the 2014 Gaza war.

“That is the essence of not leaving anyone behind,” says Adar to the thousands of people gathered at Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square.

Adar recalls her early criticism of the ceasefire deal for giving Hamas 72 hours to return the last 20 living hostages while not setting a firm deadline to hand over all the deceased captives.

“Too many ’72 hours’ have gone by and 11 hostages are still in Hamas captivity, robbed of any basic right to be buried with respect,” she says. “Hamas is playing with us — we left them an opening in the agreement and they’re taking advantage of it.”

“I swore to myself — Tamir will not have fallen in vain,” she says. “He is a sacrifice of social rehabilitation, which begins with the return of the final hostage.”