Peace deal left hanging by thread as hostages' families bury the dead

CROWDS lined streets in Israel yesterday to pay their respects to the funeral procession of one of the hostages returned by Hamas.

- By Marco Giannangeli

Mourners, many waving Israel's national flag, turned out in force to join the cortege for Guy Illouz.

The 26-year-old was kidnapped by Hamas after attempting to escape the attack on the Nova music festival, but he died in captivity from injuries sustained in the atrocity.

At the funeral, his father Michael Illouz told mourners in Ra'anana: "I will miss you every second, every minute of my life.

"They kidnapped you, they murdered you, they kidnapped me too, and my very identity, they murdered my soul and heart." The sound technician's corpse was amongst the first four bodies to be returned by the militants on Monday after the last 20 living hostages were released from Gaza.

Israel is expecting the return of the bodies of 28 hostages.

A further four were handed over by Hamas on Tuesday night.

But, in a development which placed further strain on the fragile Gaza ceasefire, Israeli officials revealed yesterday that one of those bodies did not match any of the hostages.

Israeli officials reacted with fury, accusing Hamas of deception and warning any further breach of the ceasefire agreement would end the truce in the two-year war.

"Israel will not tolerate trickery or delay when it comes to our people, living or dead," one senior government source said.