Hamas mistakenly gave Israel the wrong body initially.
The family of Shiri Bibas, an Israeli hostage, has announced the identification of her remains after Hamas initially provided the wrong body earlier in the week. In a Saturday statement, Bibas’ relatives stated she had been “murdered in captivity.”
On Thursday, as part of ongoing exchanges under a fragile ceasefire, Hamas returned the bodies of four hostages, including Bibas’ young sons, Ariel and Kfir. However, the body initially thought to be Shiri Bibas was later identified as that of an unidentified Palestinian woman, sparking outrage in Israel.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denounced the error, calling it a “cruel and evil violation” of the ceasefire and warned Hamas would face “the full price” for failing to return Bibas’ body.
Hamas acknowledged the error, citing “the possibility of an error or mix-up of bodies” in the rubble after an Israeli airstrike hit the location where she was held. Hamas reaffirmed its commitment to the ceasefire and promised to correct the mistake.
The Associated Press reported on Friday that the Palestinian group handed over the woman’s remains to the Red Cross, which then transferred them to Israeli authorities. In a Saturday morning statement, Bibas’ family confirmed the handover, saying, “Last night, our Shiri was returned home.”
“Following the identification process at the Institute of Forensic Medicine, we received this morning the news we had dreaded – our Shiri was murdered in captivity and has now returned home to her sons, husband, sister, and all her family for rest,” the family stated.
The conflict between Israel and Hamas intensified in October 2023, after the Palestinian militants attacked Israeli territories near Gaza, killing around 1,200 people and taking 250 hostage. Since then, Israel has conducted a large-scale campaign against Hamas in Gaza, resulting in nearly 47,000 casualties, according to health authorities in the enclave.
Thursday’s release was the first instance of Hamas returning bodies to Israel since the Gaza ceasefire agreement was announced last month. The deal aims for the release of 33 Israeli hostages and approximately 1,900 Palestinian prisoners.
Hamas is expected to release six Israeli hostages this weekend, completing the first phase of the current ceasefire agreement. Next week, Hamas is expected to release the remains of four more hostages.
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