Hamas handed over the bodies on Thursday of Israeli infant Kfir Bibas and his four-year-old brother Ariel, the two youngest captives taken by Hamas On October 7, 2023.
The remains were said to be those of Shiri Bibas and her two children, Ariel and Kfir, as well as Oded Lifshitz, who was 83 when he was abducted. Kfir, who was 9 months old when he was taken, was the youngest of all the captives. Hamas has said all four were killed along with their guards in Israeli airstrikes.
Red Cross vehicles drove away from the handover site in the Gaza Strip with four black coffins that had been placed on a stage.
Each of the caskets had a small picture of the prisoners.
Armed Hamas fighters in black and camouflage uniforms surrounded the area.
After the prisoners were handed over by the Red Cross, the coffins were scanned for explosives, according to the military, before being transported to Israel.
“The hearts of an entire nation lie in tatters,” Israel’s president has said, as the bodies of four hostages taken alive by Hamas in its attack on 7 October 2023 were returned to Tel Aviv.
Hamas says the bodies are those of a mother and two children from the Bibas family, whose unknown fate has gripped Israel, and Oded Lifschitz, 84, a veteran peace activist.
President Isaac Herzog wrote “there are no words” in a post on social media platform X, asking the four for forgiveness “for not bringing you home safely”.
It is the first time the group Hamas has returned captives dead since the ceasefire began last month, with Israel saying it will confirm their identities after forensic examinations.
Six living hostages are due to be freed on Saturday.
