JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel on Wednesday said it will start letting Palestinians leave Gaza through a reopened border crossing, complying with a U.S.-backed ceasefire deal even though it also said that partial remains returned by militants did not match the hostages still in Gaza.

The missing remains of the two hostages threaten to stall a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in its first phase. But by promising to open the Rafah crossing, Israel showed it was moving ahead with parts of the plan.

The first phase of the plan is supposed to wind down with the return of the two remaining hostages. Palestinian militants, who appear to be struggling to find the remains amid the rubble of war-torn Gaza, said they were searching again on Wednesday.

Following the exchanges, the 20-point plan calls fo

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