Cracks in ceasefire deal – Israel restricts aid until Hamas returns all hostage bodies | BBC News

There are signs of strain in the Israel-Gaza ceasefire deal, one day after the return of all surviving hostages to Israel and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from parts of Gaza.

Under the terms of the deal, the bodies of all hostages, alive and dead, should have been returned home at the same time. Hamas says it is struggling to immediately locate the remains of 20 dead hostages, buried in the devastated landscape of Gaza.

Israel has rejected that explanation and says it is restricting the humanitarian aid it’s allowing into Gaza and will keep the key border crossing at Rafah closed, until Hamas complies. Aid agencies are warning that withholding aid supplies will place a terrible burden on Gaza’s desperate population, many of whom have no shelter and little food or medical support.

There are also questions about whether Hamas will comply with the requirement to give up its weapons as part of the deal. Armed Hamas fighters have returned to the streets and have been involved in gun battles with armed clans they accuse of collaborating with Israel.

Israeli forces killed seven people in Gaza on the second day of the ceasefire agreement, when its forces opened fire on people it said were attempting to cross into Gazan territory still controlled by Israel.

US President Donald Trump, who returned to Washington after his visit to Israel and peace summit in Egypt, insisted that he had secured a permanent peace agreement and there would be no return to fighting.

Meanwhile former Israeli hostages, released Palestinian prisoners and their families have been speaking for the first time since their return of their joy at being free.

Clive Myrie presents BBC News at Ten reporting by Jeremy Bowen, Lucy Williamson and Sarah Smith. Subscribe here: http://bit.ly/1rbfUog

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