The remains of two child hostages have been identified but another body released by Hamas was not the boys’ mother, the Israeli military said.
Hamas militants had turned over four bodies Thursday under the tenuous ceasefire that has paused over 15 months of war. Israeli confirmed one body was that of Oded Lifshitz, who was 83 when he was abducted during the Hamas attack that started the war on Oct. 7, 2023.
The remains of Ariel and Kfir Bibas were identified by the National Institute of Forensic Medicine in collaboration with the Israel Police and the families were notified, the Israeli Defense Forces said in a statement. It said the boys were killed in captivity in November 2023.
But the additional body was not that of their mother Shiri Bibas, nor any other hostage, the military said.
“This is a violation of utmost severity by the Hamas terrorist organization, which is obligated under the agreement to return four deceased hostages,” the Israeli military said in a statement early Friday. “We demand that Hamas return Shiri home along with all our hostages.”
Hamas officials could not be immediately reached for comment.
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The fate of Ariel and Kfir, just 4 years old and 9 months old when they were abducted, captivated Israelis, and the return, along with a body said to be that of their mother, Shiri Bibas, brings a tragic measure of closure to the country.
But it is also likely to fuel anger over the government's failure to bring home some 250 hostages sooner and safely, and it could step up pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to extend the ceasefire.
The mother and children were taken captive from Kibbutz Nir Oz. Video of the abduction, with a terrified Shiri Bibas seen swaddling her two redheaded boys in a blanket and being whisked away by armed men, ricocheted around the world in the hours after the attack.
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Yarden Bibas, the father, was abducted and held separately and released on Feb. 1, as part of the first phase of the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas that paused the 15-month-long war in Gaza. During the first phase, a total of 33 hostages are to be freed in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. Eight of those 33 were said by Israel to be dead.
Since his release, Yarden Bibas has pleaded for information about his family, whose fate has been unclear for much of the war.
While Hamas last year released a video of Yarden Bibas in captivity as a sign of life, nothing had been heard from his wife or children. The militant group claimed they were killed in an Israeli airstrike in the first weeks of the war, and filmed Yarden Bibas receiving the news. Israel did not confirm the claim, saying just that it had “grave concern” for their lives.
The Bibas boys became icons and their plight transfixed Israelis
The Bibas family's struggle became a rallying cry for protesters demanding the hostages be freed. Concern for their well-being emerged during a November 2023 ceasefire, when most women and children were freed, and grew in recent weeks when living women hostages were freed.
At just 9 months old, Kfir was the youngest of about 30 children taken hostage Oct. 7. The infant with red hair and a toothless smile became an icon across Israel and his ordeal was raised by Israeli leaders on podiums around the world.
The extended Bibas family has been active at protests, branding the color orange as the symbol of their fight for the “ginger babies.” They marked Kfir Bibas' first birthday with a release of orange balloons and lobbied world leaders for support.
Family photos aired on TV and posted across social media created a national bond with the two boys and made them familiar faces. Israelis learned of Ariel Bibas’ love for Batman and photos from a happier time showed the entire family dressed up as the character.
The Hostages Families Forum said there were more hostages in Gaza whose lives could still be saved, and called for an extension to the ceasefire.
“There is no more time to waste,” it said in a statement.
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