More than 69,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Israel-Hamas war, Gaza health officials said Saturday, as both sides carried out another exchange of bodies under the terms of a fragile ceasefire.

The sharp rise in casualties reflects the continued recovery and identification of bodies from across the devastated Gaza Strip since the truce began on October 10, as well as new deaths from Israeli strikes that the military says target remaining Hamas fighters.

According to hospital officials in Gaza, Israel returned the remains of 15 Palestinians on Saturday, one day after militants handed over the body of an Israeli hostage. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office identified the hostage as Lior Rudaeff, an Argentine-born Israeli citizen.

The exchange of remains is a key element of the ceasefire’s first phase, which requires Hamas to return all hostages or their remains to Israel. Families of the remaining captives held another vigil Saturday night in Tel Aviv, pressing for the safe return of their loved ones.

The ongoing truce seeks to de-escalate what has become the deadliest and most destructive conflict between Israel and Hamas. The war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas militants launched a surprise assault on southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people and abducting 251 others, according to Israeli authorities.

Meanwhile, tensions continue to flare in the occupied West Bank, where Israeli settlers carried out two attacks Saturday against Palestinian farmers and villagers amid this year’s olive harvest — part of a broader surge in settler violence since the Gaza conflict began.

Human rights groups warn that the fragile ceasefire remains at risk, with both sides trading accusations of violations even as international mediators push to extend the pause in fighting and expand humanitarian access to Gaza’s 2.3 million residents.