Eight of the 26 hostages still to be released from Gaza during the first phase of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire are dead, The Telegraph has learned.

A source familiar with the issue, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Telegraph Hamas informed Israel on Sunday night that 25 of the total 33 hostages scheduled for release in the first phase have died since Oct 7 2023.

It is unclear which hostages are deceased. Hamas has so far released seven of the 33 Israelis scheduled for freedom in this phase, with another three are expected to be freed alive on Thursday.

After Hamas violated its part of the ceasefire agreement over the weekend by releasing soldiers instead of civilians, Israel announced that Palestinians wouldn’t be able to move to northern Gaza until the remaining civilians had been released.