The family of Shiri Bibas has accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of not safeguarding their loved ones during Hamas’s attack on 7 October 2023 and for not securing their return.
“There is no forgiveness for abandoning them on October 7, and no forgiveness for leaving them in captivity. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, we did not receive an apology from you in this painful moment,” Ofri Bibas expressed in a statement.
Israeli experts noted that one of the four bodies returned by Hamas yesterday was an unidentified woman, not Ms. Bibas.
The two boys, their mother Shiri Bibas, and a fourth hostage, Oded Lifschitz, were reportedly brought back to Israel yesterday.
Mr. Netanyahu condemned Hamas for behaving “in an unspeakably cynical manner” by placing the body of a Gazan woman in the coffin instead of Ms. Bibas, who was taken alongside her two sons, Kfir and Ariel, and her husband, Yarden, during the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October 2023.
The bodies of Kfir and Ariel were among those identified and returned.
Yarden Bibas was released in a prisoner exchange earlier this month.
Israeli citizens lined the streets, awaiting the return of the hostages’ bodies yesterday.
“We will act decisively to bring Shiri home along with all our hostages – both living and dead – and ensure Hamas pays the full price for this cruel and evil violation of the agreement,” Mr. Netanyahu stated in a video message.
Ismail Al-Thawabta, director of the Hamas-run Gaza government media office, claimed that Shiri Bibas’ remains appeared to be mixed with other human remains due to being buried under the rubble of a building destroyed in an Israeli airstrike.
“Netanyahu himself gave the orders for the direct and merciless bombing, and he bears full responsibility for killing her and her children,” he added in a statement.
In November 2023, Hamas claimed that the children and their mother had been killed in an Israeli airstrike.
The Israeli military indicated that intelligence evaluations and forensic analysis suggested that the Bibas children’s deaths were intentional actions by their captors.
(L-R) Shiri Bibas, Kfir and Ariel Bibas, and Oded Lifschitz
Mr. Netanyahu did not provide specifics regarding a potential Israeli response, but the situation highlighted the tenuousness of the ceasefire agreement established with US support and facilitated by Qatari and Egyptian mediators last month.
Hamas dismissed Mr. Netanyahu’s “threats” to retaliate against the Palestinian Islamist group.
“We reject the threats made by Benjamin Netanyahu as part of his efforts to enhance his image,” Hamas stated, calling on Israeli authorities to return the body of the Gazan woman handed over yesterday.
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Six living hostages are scheduled for release tomorrow.
Meanwhile, Hamas’s military wing confirmed it will release six hostages held alive in Gaza as part of the ongoing ceasefire agreement with Israel.
The Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades stated in a message that the release is set to take place tomorrow as planned.
The Israeli advocacy group, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, revealed the names of the six hostages earlier this week: Eliya Cohen, Tal Shoham, Omer Shem Tov, Omer Wenkert, Hisham Al-Sayed, and Avera Mengistu.
In their statement, Hamas noted that Israel is expected to release 602 Palestinian prisoners and detainees tomorrow.
As tensions regarding the Gaza ceasefire increased, Mr. Netanyahu instructed the Israeli military to heighten operations in another Palestinian region, the occupied West Bank, following multiple explosions that damaged empty buses in their depots near Tel Aviv.
No injuries were reported, but the explosions served as a reminder of the campaign of suicide attacks on public transport that led to the deaths of hundreds of Israeli civilians during the Second Intifada in the early 2000s.
Read more: IDF to ‘intensify’ West Bank operations after bus blasts Martin: ‘Parading bodies’ of Israeli hostages ‘callous’
Both sides have consistently accused one another of violating the ceasefire, with Hamas threatening to postpone the release of hostages due to what it described as Israel’s refusal to permit the entry of construction materials and other aid into Gaza – a claim that Israel denies.
The failure to return Shiri Bibas and the public handover of the four coffins yesterday sparked outrage in Israel, putting pressure on Mr. Netanyahu from hardliners within the government to respond.
The Israel Hayom newspaper reported that Israeli negotiators were contemplating seeking an extension of the 42-day ceasefire rather than moving on to the second phase, which would involve discussions on complex issues such as ending the war and determining Hamas’s future in Gaza.
The Red Cross expressed concern and dissatisfaction over the fact that the handover of the bodies was not conducted privately and with dignity.
A major group representing the families of hostages stated they were “horrified and devastated” by the news that Shiri Bibas’ body had not been returned but urged the continuation of the ceasefire to facilitate the return of all 70 hostages still in Gaza.
“Save them from this nightmare,” the Hostages and Missing Families Forum stated in a message.
