JERUSALEM — The European Union on Saturday condemned Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon, urging restraint as tensions in the region threaten to unravel a fragile US-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
The condemnation came as Israel confirmed that the remains of a hostage returned from Gaza belonged to Lior Rudaeff, an Israeli man killed during Hamas’s October 7, 2023 assault; the attack that ignited the ongoing war.
According to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, Rudaeff’s body was among those handed over by Palestinian militants under the terms of the ceasefire. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum said Rudaeff, born in Argentina and long settled in Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak, had spent decades volunteering as an ambulance driver and serving on his community’s emergency team. He was killed during the initial Hamas assault, and his body was taken into Gaza.
Since the ceasefire began on October 10, militants have released the remains of 23 hostages, including Rudaeff. Five remain in Gaza. Israel, in return, has released 15 Palestinian bodies for each Israeli hostage, amounting to 285 so far, according to the Red Cross and Gaza’s Health Ministry. Only 84 of the Palestinian bodies have been formally identified amid a lack of DNA testing equipment.
The truce also requires Israel to allow far greater humanitarian aid into Gaza. Yet, the UN says deliveries remain “woefully inadequate.” Deputy spokesperson Farhan Haqq reported that while 200,000 metric tons of aid are ready to enter, just 37,000 tons, mostly food, have been allowed through.
The war, now stretching into its second year, has killed roughly 1,200 people in Israel and more than 68,800 Palestinians, Gaza health officials say. For both sides, even ceasefires seem haunted by the weight of the dead.
