Hamas handed over the bodies of four Israeli hostages on Thursday in a widely condemned public ceremony in Khan Younis, southern Gaza. The bodies included Shiri Bibas, 33, her two young sons, Ariel and Kfir, and 84-year-old Oded Lifschitz. The Bibas brothers, the youngest hostages taken in Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel, had become a symbol of national anguish.
During the handover, masked Hamas fighters displayed four black coffins on a stage adorned with banners and propaganda, including an image of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with fangs. Thousands of armed militants and civilians gathered for the event, as Hamas claimed the Bibas family had been killed in an Israeli airstrike, a claim Israel never confirmed.
Global Condemnation
The public nature of the handover drew international criticism. United Nations Human Rights Chief Volker Türk called it “abhorrent and cruel,” stressing that such transfers should be done privately and with dignity. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) echoed this sentiment, emphasizing respect for the deceased and their grieving families Israeli President Isaac Herzog lamented, “The hearts of an entire nation lie in tatters.” Prime Minister Netanyahu called the deaths an “unbearable grief” for Israel and condemned Hamas as “monsters.”
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The Journey Home
After the bodies were handed over to the Red Cross, they were transferred to Israeli forces and taken to Tel Aviv. Crowds gathered along the route, waving Israeli and yellow hostage flags in mourning. The bodies were transported to the Abu Kabir forensic institute in Jaffa for formal identification and post-mortems.
The Bibas family, along with Oded Lifschitz and his wife, were among the hostages taken from Kibbutz Nir Oz during Hamas’s deadly assault on October 7, which killed around 1,200 people and saw 251 captives taken into Gaza. Israel’s subsequent military campaign has resulted in over 48,000 Palestinian deaths, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
Ceasefire Deal and Future Exchanges
The release of the four bodies is part of an ongoing ceasefire deal between Hamas and Israel, under which Hamas has agreed to free 33 hostages in exchange for around 1,900 Palestinian prisoners. On Saturday, Hamas is expected to release six living hostages, with plans to return four more bodies next week.
Israelis have been closely following hostage releases, with many gathering in Tel Aviv’s Hostage Square to witness each return. However, the Bibas family’s fate has been particularly painful, with their deaths confirmed only after months of uncertainty.
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As negotiations continue, around 60 hostages remain in Gaza, with only half believed to be alive. Talks on the next phase of the ceasefire, which could lead to the release of the remaining captives and a potential end to the war, have yet to begin.