JERUSALEM (AP) — Health officials in Gaza say Israel has handed over the bodies of 45 Palestinians.

Zaher al-Wahidi, a spokesperson at the Gaza Health Ministry, told the AP that Nasser Hospital in Gaza received the bodies Monday morning.

It comes a day after Palestinian militants returned to Israel the remains of three Israeli troops taken hostage on Oct. 7, 2023.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel said on Monday the remains of three hostages returned from Gaza the previous night belong to soldiers who were killed in the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023 that triggered the war. The positive identification marked another step forward for the tenuous, U.S.-brokered ceasefire.

Since the ceasefire took effect on Oct. 10, Palestinian mi

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