The Israeli Defense Forces announced that Hamas had handed over three coffins that were believed to contain the bodies of the hostages.

Israel received the coffins through the Red Cross. An autopsy will be conducted, it said.

If the bodies are confirmed to be Israeli hostages, the remaining eight Israelis and foreign nationals in Gaza will be held hostage.

Under the first phase of President Donald Trump's peace plan, Hamas has agreed to release 20 living hostages and the bodies of 28 others.

Israel has said Hamas has been slow to return the bodies, while Hamas has said it will take time to exhume the bodies from the rubble.

The al-Qassim Brigades, Hamas's armed wing, said the bodies were found near a tunnel in the southern Gaza Strip.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on his Twitter page, "We have provided information to the families of the hostages. We support them in this difficult time. We will continue our efforts until all the hostages are returned."

The Association of Families of the Hostages is pressuring Netanyahu to recover the bodies of all the hostages and return them as soon as possible.