The two young redheaded boys, symbols of the ongoing campaign for the release of hostages from a Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, have captured the hearts of Israelis. On Thursday, an unofficial day of mourning was observed as Hamas handed over three black coffins, allegedly containing the remains of Ariel Bibas, aged 4; his baby brother Kfir, not yet 9 months old; and their mother, Shiri Bibas, aged 32.
A fourth coffin contained the remains of Oded Lifshitz, an octogenarian peace activist and founder of the pastoral Israeli village of Nir Oz, where he and the Bibas family lived. All four were alive when taken captive, but it was later revealed that only three of the four bodies were returned.
During a disturbing handover ceremony in Gaza, the coffins were displayed alongside family photos that had been used in hostage posters in Israel. The masked gunmen involved in the ceremony appeared to have confused the images of the children with different names.
By early Friday morning, the Israeli military confirmed that the remains of Ariel and Kfir had been positively identified by the National Center of Forensic Medicine and the Israel police. Lifshitz's body had been identified earlier that same day.
However, a shocking development emerged when the military announced that the additional body received was not that of Shiri Bibas, and no matches were found for any other hostages. The military deemed this a “violation of utmost severity” of Hamas’s cease-fire agreement with Israel.
This revelation, which came as many Israelis were sleeping, could further destabilize the cease-fire and exacerbate the national anguish surrounding the Bibas family's situation. Yarden Bibas, Shiri Bibas's husband and the boys' father, had been abducted separately during the October 7 attack and was released earlier this month as part of a cease-fire deal.
The fate of his family has caused widespread distress in Israel, highlighting what many perceive as Hamas's cruelty. Shiri Bibas’s elderly parents were also killed in the October attack.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the nation on Thursday, expressing collective grief, stating, “Today, every home in Israel bows its head.” A month after the attack, Hamas claimed that Ms. Bibas and her children had been killed in an Israeli airstrike, but Israeli authorities had not confirmed their deaths until recently.
The Israeli military indicated that intelligence and forensic findings suggested that the two Bibas boys had been “brutally murdered by terrorists in captivity in 2023.” The cause of Lifshitz’s death has not been detailed by the government, though it stated he had been “murdered in captivity” by Islamic Jihad.
Hamas transferred the bodies as part of a series of negotiations linked to the cease-fire agreement, which includes the release of 33 Israeli hostages in exchange for over 1,500 Palestinian prisoners. The current phase of the agreement is set to expire in early March.
Approximately 1,200 individuals died in the Hamas-led attack, and more than 250 were abducted. The community of Nir Oz was particularly affected, with about a quarter of its 400 residents killed or taken hostage.
In response to the recent events, groups of Israelis held silent vigils in the rain as the coffins were transported to the National Center of Forensic Medicine in Tel Aviv. Eylon Keshet, a cousin of Mr. Bibas, described Ariel as a lively boy who enjoyed being the center of attention, while Kfir was characterized as a calm baby beginning to eat solid food.
The Hostage Families Forum expressed sorrow over the loss, emphasizing that the victims were not just names but beloved individuals with dreams and futures taken from them.