Units from Egypt and the ICRC have been authorized to search for the remains of deceased hostages taken during the 7 October attacks, Israeli authorities have confirmed.
The Israeli government announced that the crews have been allowed to search beyond the so-called "demarcation line" in the region under the control of Israeli forces in Gaza.
The group has transferred fifteen out of 28 deceased Israeli hostages under the first phase of a US-brokered truce agreement, which requires it to transfer all remains of captives. The group stated it is now coordinating with Egyptian authorities.
The former US president has cautions Hamas to start return the bodies "promptly, or the other countries participating in this great peace will take action".
An official representative said the Egyptian team has been permitted to collaborate with the ICRC to find the bodies, and would use excavator machines and trucks for the search beyond the "yellow line".
The "demarcation line" indicates the border running along the north, south and east of the Gaza territory that Israel withdrew to, as part of the first stage of the truce agreement.
Previously, Israel has not authorized the access of such teams.
The Egyptian government, along with Qatari officials and Turkey, is a key signatory of the Trump-brokered peace initiative for Gaza, which was ratified in the coastal city of the resort town in recent weeks.
The news will be welcomed by family members, desperate to provide a proper burial.
The International Committee of the Red Cross has already been deeply engaged in the return of captives.
The organization does not transfer its detainees - living or deceased - straight to the Israel Defense Forces, but rather to the Red Cross, which in turn accompanies them through the territory and hands them on to the IDF.
But the entry of Egyptian excavation teams inside the Gaza territory is new.
After more than 24 months of heavy shelling by Israeli forces, the UN estimates that as much as 84% of the territory has been destroyed completely.
Hamas says it is doing its best to retrieve remains of captives, but it encounters challenges locating them under rubble of structures bombed out by the Israeli military in the region.
It is now working in coordination with the Egyptian authorities.
On Sunday, an official representative said that Hamas was aware of where the bodies were.
"If Hamas made more of an effort, they would be able to retrieve the bodies of our hostages," the spokesperson said.
Trump posted on his social media account on the weekend that action would be taken if the remains of the deceased hostages were not handed back quickly.
"Some of the bodies are difficult to access, but others they can hand over at present and, for unknown reasons, they are not. Perhaps it has to do with their demilitarization," he said.
Trump added: "We will observe what they accomplish over the coming two days. I am watching this with great attention."
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On the weekend, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would determine which foreign forces it would permit as part of a proposed international force in Gaza to help maintain the truce under the former president's initiative.
"We are in control of our safety, and we have also made it clear regarding foreign troops that Israel will determine which forces are unacceptable to us, and this is how we function and will proceed," he declared speaking at the beginning of a cabinet meeting.
On Friday, the American diplomat said "numerous nations" had offered to be involved in the contingent - but noted Israeli authorities would have to be satisfied with participants.
This seemed like a reference to the Turkish government, amid accounts Israeli officials had vetoed the nation's participation.
It remained unclear, however, how such a force could be deployed without an understanding with the organization.
The Israeli military initiated a military campaign in the territory in response to the 7 October 2023 attack, in which militants associated with the group killed about twelve hundred individuals and captured 251 others as hostages.
At least 68,519 have been lost their lives in military actions in the region since then, according to the area's health authorities under the group's control.
