Hamas publicly displayed four black coffins on a stage in Gaza before transferring the remains of four Israeli hostages, including three members of the Bibas family, to Israeli authorities on Thursday, according to an AFP journalist.
Each coffin was displayed with a photo of the person Hamas said it would hand over to the Red Cross—Shiri Bibas, her young sons Kfir and Ariel, and a fourth hostage, Oded Lifshitz.
Thousands, including large numbers of Hamas militants and other factions, gathered at the handover site on the outskirts of the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis.
Among the bodies returned were Shiri Bibas and her two young sons, Ariel, 5, and Kfir, 2—the youngest hostages held by Hamas—along with another hostage, Oded Lifshitz, who was 83 when he was abducted.
The Red Cross staff covered the coffins in white shrouds before loading them onto trucks, as thousands watched in the rain in Khan Younis.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged the sorrowful moment, calling it “a very difficult day for the State of Israel – a heartbreaking day, a day of grief. We are bringing home four of our beloved hostages – fallen heroes.”
Their deaths were described as “heart-shattering” by an Israeli group campaigning for hostage releases.
Hamas has claimed that Shiri and her children were killed in an Israeli air strike early in the war, but Israel has never confirmed this. The Bibas family had continued to hold out hope that they were still alive.
“The handover comes as Hamas signals its willingness to release all remaining hostages in a single swap, aiming to secure a permanent ceasefire with Israel,” said senior Hamas official Taher al-Nunu.
“We have informed the mediators that Hamas is ready to release all hostages in one batch during the second phase of the agreement, rather than in stages as in the current first phase,” the official added.
The ongoing ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which began in January, has so far resulted in the release of 19 Israeli hostages in exchange for over 1,100 Palestinian prisoners. The International Committee of the Red Cross, which has facilitated these exchanges, urged both sides to ensure a respectful transfer.
The conflict between Israel and Hamas erupted on October 7, 2023, when Hamas and its allies took 251 people hostage during an attack on Israel, killing 1,211 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli figures. In retaliation, Israel launched an extensive military campaign in Gaza, which has resulted in the deaths of over 48,000 people, according to the Gaza health ministry.
Currently, 70 hostages remain in Gaza, with the Israeli military believing that at least 35 of them are dead.
