Responding to Qatar, Hostages Forum says Doha should focus on getting Hamas to release final 2 bodies

The Hostages Forum responds to comments made by a senior Qatari official who said that Israel should not delay the move to next phase of Gaza deal over the two remaining hostage bodies, saying that Doha should be focusing its efforts on ensuring the remains are released.

“We remind the mediators, primarily Qatar’s Foreign Ministry, that the return of the hostages is the core of this agreement. The deal was signed to bring home 48 hostages: 20 living survivors on the first day and 28 deceased hostages within 72 hours,” the forum says.

“Nearly two months have passed since the agreement was signed, yet two hostages remain in captivity. Instead of pressuring Israel not to ‘use delays as an excuse,’ the mediators should direct their full efforts and leverage all available pressure toward Hamas, the terrorist organization that has failed to meet its commitments under the agreement,” the forum says.

“Hamas has proven it knows exactly where all the hostages are located. When it chooses to, it directs recovery teams to recover them,” the organization says.

Two deceased hostages abducted on October 7, 2023, remain in Gaza: police officer Ran Gvili, killed fending off the Hamas invasion at Kibbutz Alumim; and Thai national Sudthisak Rinthalak, who was taken from Kibbutz Be’eri, where he worked in agriculture.