Image source, Reuters

Hamas has handed over the bodies of Israeli hostages for the first time since the ceasefire began last month.

Here's a summary of the day:

• Hamas returned the bodies of four hostages in choreographed scenes reminiscent of recent handovers of living hostages
• They were then transferred to Israeli forces in Gaza and brought to Israel, where the bodies are due to undergo post-mortems
• Crowds lined the streets as a police convoy carrying the coffins drove to Tel Aviv - "the hearts of an entire nation lie in tatters," Israeli President Isaac Herzog said
• Hamas said the bodies are those of a mother and two children from the Bibas family, whose unknown fate has gripped Israel, and Oded Lifschitz, an 84-year-old veteran peace activist
• The armed group has claimed the three Bibas family members were killed in an Israeli strike more than a year ago, without providing evidence. The BBC hasn't been able to independently verify this, and Israel said it will confirm their identities and causes of death after forensic testing

We are ending our coverage now. Follow further updates in our main news story.

Image source, Reuters

Hamas has also announced it will release six living hostages on Saturday – double the number originally planned.

The armed group has named two of the six Israelis to be released.

They are Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, who were seized in 2014 and 2015 respectively after they crossed into Gaza on their own. The Israeli government has said both suffered from mental health issues at the time.

The families of several hostages have said that their loved ones are among those due to be released on the same day.

They are Omer Shem Tov, 22, Eliya Cohen, 27 and Omer Wenkert, 23, who were taken from the Nova Festival on 7 October 2023, and 40-year-old Tal Shoam who was kidnapped from Kibbutz Be'eri.

As we've reported, today marks the first time the bodies of Israeli hostages have been handed over by Hamas.

Under the first phase of the ceasefire which took effect on 19 January, Hamas has so far freed 19 hostages in addition to the four bodies returned today, while more than 1,100 Palestinian prisoners have been released.

Last week, the parents of four young female Israeli hostages freed from Hamas captivity in Gaza told the BBC about how their daughters were abused, including being starved, intimidated and threatened by armed men, and forced to cook and clean.

They said the women found strength through sharing stories, drawing and keeping a diary.

None of the women have given interviews to the media since their release, and their parents say the full details of what they endured are still emerging. There are also things they can't speak about due to fears it could put the hostages still in Gaza at risk.

Three of the four women whose parents spoke to the BBC were female soldiers kidnapped by Hamas from the Nahal Oz army base near Gaza on 7 October 2023.

• Read more on that story

How many hostages remain in Gaza?published at 11:45 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February

11:45 GMT 20 February

By Emma Pengelly, Alex Murray and Jamie Ryan

After four bodies were returned to Israel today, 69 hostages remain inside Gaza. Of those who remain in Gaza, there are three men who have been held for around a decade. One of them is thought to be dead.

More than half of the remaining hostages (36) are believed to be dead and their families have been informed by Israel. That leaves 33 assumed living hostages, Hamas however claims this number is lower.

For phase one of the ceasefire, it was agreed that Hamas would hand over 33 hostages. So far, 19 have been released alive in addition to the four bodies returned today. Five Thai nationals were released at the end of January under a separate agreement.

Ten more hostages are due to be released during phase one of the ceasefire which ends on the first weekend of March. Six of them are alive and are expected to be freed on Saturday. That would leave four others, who Hamas says are dead.

Previously, 109 hostages were returned to Israel in 2023 releases including the temporary ceasefire of November 2023.

The IDF has rescued eight hostages and recovered the remains of 41 others, including three hostages it accidentally killed.

As the bodies of the four hostages arrive in Tel Aviv to be formally identified, Israelis in Jerusalem have been sharing their reflections with the Reuters news agency.

Nicky Cregor, a 60-year-old social worker, says it's "one of the saddest days" of their 40 years in Israel, adding: "I feel sad for our society and I feel devastated for the families.

"I feel that we have an endless wound in our hearts that is going to take a long time to heal."

Similarly, 66-year-old Erez Goldman says "today is going to be a very sad day".

Image source, Lizzy Shaanan

The bodies of four hostages have arrived at the Abu Kabir forensic institute in Jaffa, Tel Aviv, the Israeli health ministry says.

Forensic teams will complete the formal identification process "as efficiently and respectfully as possible, with the utmost compassion towards the families", says spokesperson Shira Solomon.

Israel Police have released a video which shows officers saluting the convoy carrying the bodies of the four hostages returning from Gaza to Israel.

The convoy is currently making its way to Tel Aviv, where the bodies will undergo identification procedures.

Photos released by Israel Defense Forces (IDF) show the coffins, draped in Israeli flags, being received by soldiers earlier.

It is not clear where the pictures were taken. Members of the IDF received the coffins in Gaza earlier today, before they were transferred to southern Israel.

Image source, IDF

Image source, IDF

Image source, IDF

Image source, Reuters

Hamas has handed over the bodies of Israeli hostages for the first time as part of the Gaza ceasefire deal.

The armed group says the four bodies include those of Oded Lifschitz, Shiri Bibas, and her two young sons, who were aged nine months and four years when they were abducted.

Here's a timeline of how their return to Israel unfolded:

• Crowds of Palestinians began gathering in a square in Khan Younis, in the south of Gaza, from around 08:30 local time
• Four coffins were brought onto a stage that had been set up in the middle of the square. Hamas members, some of them armed, stood watch
• Shortly after 09:00, a convoy of Red Cross vehicles arrived in Khan Younis. One aid worker was invited on stage to sign a series of documents, alongside a member of Hamas
• White screens were put up around the convoy to shield the coffins from view - one by one, they were carried down from the stage, walked across the square and lifted into the vehicles
• The convoy departed Khan Younis at 10:00 - less than an hour later, Israel confirmed the bodies had been transferred to its forces in Gaza. By 12:00, they had entered southern Israel

• The bodies of the hostages are now being driven to the Abu Kabir forensic institute in Jaffa for formal identification - many Israelis line the route, while others gather in Hostages Square in Tel Aviv

Sebastian Usher
Middle East analyst

The handover of the four bodies was again a choreographed event by Hamas - this time in the devastated landscape of the southern city of Khan Younis.

Hamas fighters and other armed factions stood in serried ranks as four coffins were handed over to the Red Cross, which had asked for the process to be done in a private and dignified manner.

When the caskets were given over to Israel, the military chief rabbi recited prayers over them. Israelis have been lining the route in the cold and heavy rain that will take the bodies to Tel Aviv. The whole country is in mourning.

Shiri Bibas and her two young children have long been the most potent symbol in Israel of the horror of 7 October 2023 - and the ordeal of the hostages who were taken into captivity in Gaza.

Image source, Reuters

As we just reported, a convoy of vehicles carrying the bodies of four hostages is now in southern Israel.

Live pictures show the vehicles driving along the route to the Abu Kabir forensic institute in Jaffa, where the Israeli military says the bodies will be formally identified.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Israeli Police

The Israeli military says it has brought the coffins of the four hostages into Israel from Gaza.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will now transfer them to the Abu Kabir forensic institute in Jaffa for formal identification.

"IDF representatives are accompanying their families at this difficult time," it says in a statement.

As a reminder, Hamas says the bodies of the hostages being returned to Israel belong to Oded Lifschitz, 84, and three members of the Bibas family.

Shiri Bibas was taken from Israel with her two children, Ariel and Kfir - then four and nine months old - during the 7 October 2023 Hamas attacks.

Hamas claimed that all three were killed in an Israeli strike in November 2023, without providing evidence. The BBC hasn't been able to independently verify this, and Israel says it will not confirm their deaths before forensic testing.

Image source, EPA

Isaac Herzog has released a statement after Israel received the bodies of four hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.

In a post on X, he says:

"Agony. Pain. There are no words. Our hearts - the hearts of an entire nation - lie in tatters.

"On behalf of the state of Israel, I bow my head and ask for forgiveness. Forgiveness for not protecting you on that terrible day. Forgiveness for not bringing you home safely.

"May their memory be a blessing."

People have begun arriving at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, following the transfer of the bodies of four hostages to Israeli forces in Gaza.

Many are holding Israeli flags decorated with yellow ribbons - a symbol of solidarity and support for the hostages and their families.

Image source, EPA

Image source, Getty Images

The Israeli prime minister's office says the bodies of the four hostages have been transferred to Israeli forces in Gaza.

In a statement, it adds that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will now take them to the Abu Kabir forensic institute in Jaffa for formal identification.

It says the families of the deceased hostages will be officially notified once their deaths have been confirmed after testing.

It asks that the families' privacy to be respected.

We're now seeing live shots from southern Israel. A small crowd is gathered on a road side, many of them holding up Israeli flags.

As our world affairs correspondent Paul Adams said earlier, supporters of the hostages and their families have invited the public to line the route of the army convoy from the edge of Gaza to a forensic institute in Jaffa.

Image source, AFP

Shortly before the bodies of the four hostages were transferred to the Red Cross, Hamas released a statement in which it repeated its claim that the four hostages whose bodies are being returned today were killed in Israeli strikes.

Hamas originally claimed in November 2023 the three members of the Bibas family had been killed in an Israeli air strike, without providing evidence. The BBC hasn't been able to independently verify this. Israel says it will not confirm their deaths before forensic testing.

In its statement, Hamas claims did "everything in [its] power to protect" the hostages and "preserve their lives".

Hamas seized 251 people on 7 October 2023, and killed about 1,200 people, most of whom were civilians. After four bodies return to Israel today, 69 hostages will remain inside Gaza.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has just confirmed that the Red Cross has picked up the "four caskets of the deceased hostages".

It says they are now being brought to them and members of Israel Security Agency (ISA) in Gaza.

The Red Cross convoy is seen driving away from the square after receiving the four coffins from Hamas.

People are running alongside the vehicles, before the convoy disappears from view.

The Red Cross will soon hand over the bodies to members of the Israel Defense Forces.

Image source, AFP