Bibas family among bodies to be handed back to Israel
Israel has confirmed the “heartbreaking” news that the bodies of two of the youngest hostages and their mother are being returned by Hamas from Gaza.
Outside a mock terror tunnel at Tel Aviv’s “Hostage Square,” Yair Bibas holds photos of his captive family in Gaza — Yarden and Shiri Bibas (centre) and their two sons, Kfir (now one-year-old) and Ariel (age four), on Jan. 13, 2024. Photo by Gideon Markowicz/TPS
The remains of the youngest and one of the oldest captives seized by Hamas during the attack that ignited the war in Gaza are expected to be returned within hours, an Israeli official says.
It was the first Israeli confirmation that the bodies of Ariel and Kfir Bibas, who were four years old and nine months old when they were taken captive on October 7, 2023, were being returned on Thursday along with their mother, Shiri.
A grassroots forum representing hostage families also confirmed the names.
For many Israelis, the family has come to symbolise the plight of those taken captive.
The fate of the Bibas mother and boys was unclear for much of the war, and the family released a statement on Wednesday asking Israelis to wait for forensic identification of the remains before “eulogising our loved ones”.
The body of Oded Lifshitz, who was 83 when he was abducted, would also be returned, the official said.
He spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.
The grassroots group representing hostage families also confirmed the names.
Hamas says all four were had been killed by Israeli fire.
Israel had previously said it had “grave concern” for the lives of the Bibas family.
“The heart of an entire nation breaks,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday.
A top Hamas official announced earlier this week that the militant group would return the four bodies and free six living Israeli hostages on Saturday in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners during the ceasefire’s first phase.
The deal’s first phase calls for Hamas to gradually release 33 hostages, eight of whom are believed to be dead.
So far, the return of 19 living Israeli hostages has been celebrated across the nation, but the handover of the bodies on Thursday is sure to be met with a sombre tone.
Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya said on Tuesday the dead would include the “Bibas family”.
The Bibas family were taken hostage from Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023.
Their plight captivated Israelis who saw in them an embodiment of the brutality of Hamas’s attack.
Yarden Bibas, the husband and father, was freed from captivity earlier in February.
Lifshitz, who spent his life fighting for Arab rights, was one of the oldest hostages taken by Hamas.
His daughter, a London-based artist, said in January she was holding on to hope that he survived but also prepared for the worst.
“These are difficult hours for us, after being informed that our beloved Oded is among the deceased hostages who will be returned,” his family said in a statement.
“For 502 days we hoped and prayed for a different outcome. However, until we receive absolute certainty, our journey is not over, and even afterwards we will continue to fight until the last hostage is returned.”
As a journalist, Lifshitz campaigned for the recognition of Palestinian rights and peace between Arabs and Jews.
In his later years, he drove Palestinians to medical appointments in Israel as part of a group called On the Way to Recovery.
The release of the six living hostages on Saturday would mark an acceleration of the ceasefire deal.
Israel is expected to continue releasing hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, including many serving life sentences for deadly attacks.
During the first phase, Israel is also due to release all women and children seized from Gaza since the war began.
By: Tia Goldenberg/AP
