(MENAFN- Live Mint) US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called Hamas an 'impediment' and urged the group to disarm and stop stealing aid, which he said undermined global efforts in support of President Donald Trump's Gaza peace plan.

“Hamas continues to deprive the people of Gaza of the humanitarian aid they desperately need. This theft undermines international efforts in support of President Trump's 20 Point Plan to deliver critical assistance to innocent civilians," Rubio said on X. He also shared a video from the Pentagon's Central Command showing Hamas members suspected of stealing food from an aid truck

He added,“Hamas is the impediment. They must lay down their arms and stop their looting so that Gaza can have a brighter future.”

“The U.S.-led Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC) observed suspected Hamas operatives looting an aid truck traveling as part of a humanitarian convoy delivering needed assistance from international partners to Gazans in northern Khan Younis,” US Central Command said.

It further asserted that its coordination center got to know through video surveillance from a U.S. MQ-9 aerial drone flying overhead to oversee execution of the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel.

“Operatives attacked the driver and stole the aid and truck after moving the driver to the road's median. The driver's current status is unknown. Over the past week, international partners have delivered more than 600 trucks of commercial goods and aid into Gaza daily. This incident undermines these efforts. Nearly 40 nations and international organizations represented at the CMCC are working together to help flow humanitarian, logistical and security assistance into Gaza,” it added.

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Israel on Saturday stated that the remains of three individuals handed over by Hamas to the Red Cross in Gaza were not those of any hostages, marking the latest setback in the US-brokered ceasefire during the Israel-Hamas conflict, according to AP. The transfer came after Israel returned the bodies of 30 Palestinians to Gaza on Friday, completing an exchange following the earlier handover of two hostages' remains. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office confirmed that the three bodies were not hostages, but their identities remain unknown.

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Hamas' armed wing stated it had proposed on Friday to provide samples from unidentified bodies, but Israel declined and instead requested the full remains for examination.“We handed the bodies over to stop the claims of Israel," the statement said. Health officials in Gaza faced difficulties identifying the deceased due to the lack of DNA testing kits, the report noted.

The most lethal and devastating conflict ever fought between Israel and Hamas began with the Hamas-led attack in 2023 that killed around 1,200 people and resulted in 251 hostages being taken, AP reported. Israel's subsequent military campaign has, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, resulted in over 68,600 deaths in Gaza. Israel has rejected allegations of genocide made by a UN commission of inquiry and others, disputing the ministry's death toll figures while not offering its own alternative count.

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