‘Unacceptable’: Red Cross criticizes Hamas for staged recovery of hostage’s remains

The Red Cross issues a rare statement criticizing Hamas for staging the recovery of a hostage’s remains, burying the body in the ground before calling in Red Cross teams and retrieving it when they were present.

The organization says in a statement that it is “aware” of the IDF-issued footage showing the scene unfolding, adding that it “accepted to be present in good faith in its role as a neutral intermediary between the parties,” and that its staff “were not aware that a deceased person had been placed there prior to their arrival, as seen in the footage.”

“Our team only observed what appeared to be the recovery of remains without prior knowledge of the circumstances leading up to it,” the statement says.

“It is unacceptable that a fake recovery was staged, when so much depends on this agreement being upheld and when so many families are still anxiously awaiting news of their loved ones,” it adds.

“The ICRC is raising its concerns directly with the parties. We urgently reiterate our call for human remains to be handled in a dignified manner that upholds international humanitarian law obligations, as well as forensic standards. The return of human remains to their loved one should never be political.”