Palestinian Islamic Jihad has "closed the file" on Gaza hostages as it claimed to have "handed over the final remains" of hostages on December 2, Abu Hamza, the spokesperson for the terror group's so-called military wing, the al-Quds Brigades, said in an official Telegram post on Tuesday.
Hamza's statement comes despite the remains of the final Israeli hostage, police officer St.-Sgt.-Maj. Ran Gvili, still being held in Gaza captivity.
The al-Quds Brigades "adhered to all the terms of the ceasefire agreement," Hamza claimed, which he said came about as an achievement of Palestinian martial efforts during the war.
Hamza wrote that during the fighting, the terror group "affirmed that the enemy’s prisoners would not return except by a decision of the resistance, or in coffins, and perhaps they may never return at all.”
PIJ located remains of Thai national hostage Sudthisak Rinthalak on Dec. 2
Gaza hostage Sudthisak Rinthalak’s remains were returned to Israel and positively identified on Thursday, after PIJ claimed to have recovered his remains on December 2.
Hamas began its search for Gvili's remains in Gaza City on Sunday afternoon, with the terror group and the Red Cross conducting searches in the Gazan neighborhood of Zeitoun for his remains, Al Jazeera reported on Monday morning.
Amichai Stein and Jerusalem Post Staff contributed to this report.