Israel announced on Friday that one of the bodies handed over by Hamas as part of a cease-fire agreement did not belong to an Israeli woman who was taken hostage in 2023, contradicting claims made by the Palestinian militant group. This development raised concerns about the stability of the fragile truce and the associated hostage-for-prisoner swap.
Hamas acknowledged on Friday that there may have been a mix-up regarding the remains.
According to reports, Hamas stated on Thursday that it delivered the remains of four hostages: Shiri Bibas, 32; her two children, Ariel, 4, and Kfir Bibas, less than a year old; and Oded Lifshitz, 83. These individuals were kidnapped from Nir Oz, a village devastated during Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
The Bibas family has become a symbol of the brutality associated with the Hamas attack, particularly due to footage of Ms. Bibas with her children during their abduction. Hamas claimed that all four hostages had been killed in Israeli airstrikes, but Israeli authorities asserted that three of the four had been killed by their captors.
Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari stated that the Bibas children were murdered by their captors “with their bare hands,” and noted that Israel has shared forensic evidence with its allies. However, neither side has provided verifiable evidence to the public.
On Thursday, Hamas conducted a televised ceremony, handing over four coffins to the International Committee of the Red Cross. Each coffin displayed a photo of a captive, including that of Ms. Bibas. This display drew international condemnation, including a statement from the United Nations high commissioner for human rights, who labeled it “abhorrent and cruel.”
Following the handover, Israeli officials took the remains to the main forensic institute in Tel Aviv, where three were confirmed to be as claimed by Hamas. However, the fourth was identified as an “anonymous, unidentified corpse,” leading the Israeli military to rule out the possibility that it belonged to Ms. Bibas.
Israel characterized the failure to return Ms. Bibas's remains as a serious violation of the cease-fire agreement. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that Hamas would face consequences for this “cruel and vicious violation.” In response, Hamas acknowledged the potential for a mistake regarding the remains and called on Israel to return the body, while reiterating its commitment to the cease-fire agreement.
Looking ahead, Israel and Hamas are scheduled for another hostage-for-prisoner exchange on Saturday, which aims to release six Israeli hostages in exchange for a number of Palestinians detained by Israel. Despite outrage over Ms. Bibas's case, Israeli officials indicated they are eager to proceed with the planned exchange.
The Hamas-linked Prisoner Information Office stated that over 600 detainees would be freed in exchange, including 50 Palestinians serving life sentences for deadly attacks against Israelis and approximately 60 serving long sentences. The remainder consists of over 400 Gazans who had been detained without formal charges during the conflict.
It remains uncertain how the upcoming exchange will proceed in light of Israel's accusations that Hamas did not fulfill its obligations under the agreement. Even if the exchange takes place, significant questions remain about the future of the truce, which has temporarily halted 15 months of intense conflict in Gaza that has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians and combatants.
The initial phase of the cease-fire deal is set to expire in less than two weeks, and discussions regarding the terms for a potential extension into a second phase have yet to take place between Israel and Hamas.