Live Update 
From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, February 18, 2025
From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, February 18, 2025
PM’s office urges public not to spread rumors regarding names of slain hostages slated for return to Israel
Lazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter
The Hostages Directorate in the Prime Minister’s Office asks the public and Israeli media not to spread rumors relating to names of the dead hostages to be returned to Israel on Thursday.
It says that the request was made “in order to protect the privacy of the families in their difficult hour.”
Hamas has announced some of the names of bodies it says will be released on Thursday, but Israeli authorities are expected to wait until their own forensics teams can confirm the identities of the remains. Israeli media is also largely abstaining from publishing the names released by Hamas.
