Middle East Conflict: Israel Seeks Return of Deceased in Hostage Tragedy

Israeli children Ariel and Kfir Bibas were killed "with their bare hands" by Hamas, according to Israel, after the Palestinian terrorist organization turned over their bodies without returning the remains of their mother, Shiri Bibas.

According to Daniel Hagari, a spokesman for the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), forensic testing verified that the siblings were murdered in cold blood. He added that Hamas then made an effort to conceal the crime. "The terrorists did not shoot the two young boys—they killed them with their bare hands," he stated.

During the October 7, 2023, strikes on Israel, Hamas took the Bibas family captive.

Together with their parents, Shiri and Yarden, the boys, who were four and ten months old at the time, were kidnapped.

The repatriation of his children's bodies has only made the family's suffering worse, even though Yarden was freed earlier this month as part of a precarious ceasefire agreement.

Two of the four bodies that Hamas turned over on Friday were identified as Kfir and Ariel.

Shiri's remains, however, were unidentifiable and did not match any known hostages.

Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, denounced Hamas for what he described as a "cruel and evil" crime and promised that the organization would "pay the full price" for its deeds.

After an alleged Israeli bombardment demolished the building where Shiri was housed, Hamas said her remains were mixed with those of another lady. Netanyahu disputed this theory and charged the group with intentional dishonesty.

"Not only did they abduct the father, the young mother, and their two small infants in an unimaginably cynical manner, but they also failed to return Shiri to her children," he continued. "Instead, they placed the body of a Gazan woman in a coffin."

In the meantime, the Bibas family has been angry with the Israeli government and blamed Netanyahu for not securing their release and failing to protect their loved ones during the Hamas attack.

"There is no forgiveness for abandoning them in captivity, and there is no forgiveness for abandoning them on October 7," Yarden Bibas' sister, Ofri Bibas, stated. "We did not receive an apology from you in this painful moment."

The fourth body found was that of journalist Oded Lifschitz, who was 83 years old and had ties to the UK. The Israeli military has reaffirmed its demand that Hamas deliver the bodies of those captives who have died, including Shiri Bibas.

Separately, Israel declared that it had obtained a list of six hostages that Hamas planned to free on Saturday. The public has been asked to refrain from disseminating unconfirmed information, and the families have been notified.

Tal Shoham, Omer Shem-Tov, Eliya Cohen, Omer Wenkert, Avera Mengistu, and Hisham al-Sayed are the hostages that Hamas has designated for release.