Shiri Bibas’ family says her remains have been returned

The remains of Israel hostage Shiri Bibas have been returned, her family said, a day after Israel’s military said the first set of remains released by Hamas earlier this week turned out to be the body of an unknown Gazan woman instead. 

Hamas, which has been designated a terrorist group by the U.S. and Israel, handed over four bodies on Thursday as part of the Gaza ceasefire agreement that took effect on Jan. 19. They included those of Bibas’ two young children, who were taken hostage with their mother during Hamas’ terror attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Shiri Bibas’ body was said to have been returned as well, but Israeli forces said later that it was the body of an unidentified Gazan woman.

Her family said the correct remains were handed over Friday night. The family said that the Israeli Institute of Forensic Medicine identified the remains as Bibas’. Details about memorial services will be shared later, the family said. 

“For 16 months we sought certainty, and now that it’s here, it brings no comfort, though we hope it marks the beginning of closure,” the family said in a statement shared by Bring Them Home Now, a group advocating for the release of the Israeli hostages. 

The remains of Bibas’ children were handed over by Hamas on Thursday. Shiri Bibas’ body was said to have been returned as well, but Israeli forces later said it was the body of an unidentified Gazan woman. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday vowed to make Hamas pay “the full price” following their mistake, calling it a “cruel and wicked violation” of the ceasefire.

Bibas’ sons, Ariel and Kfir, were 4 years old and 9 months old, respectively, when they were taken. Kfir was the youngest of the Oct. 7 captives. The children’s father, Yarden Bibas, was not with his family on Oct. 7, but was taken hostage separately. He was released earlier in February.

The fourth body returned by Hamas was that of Oded Lifshitz, who was 83 when he was taken captive.

Hamas has claimed that Shiri Bibas, her sons and Lifshitz were killed by an Israeli airstrike in Gaza. The Bibas family said that she was “murdered in captivity.” 

The handover of the wrong body put more strain on the already fragile ceasefire. The first six-week phase of the agreement, during which Hamas was to hand over 33 living Israeli hostages, is set to end next week. Six living hostages are expected to be released by Hamas on Saturday. 

Israel has also been releasing scores of Palestinian prisoners during the first phase.

There has not been any indication of progress in talks on the second phase of the ceasefire from Israel, Hamas, or the U.S. and other countries that helped negotiate the deal.

Israel’s 15-month war against Hamas killed more than 48,000 people in Gaza, according to the Palestinian territory’s Hamas-run Ministry of Health. About 1,200 Israelis were killed in Hamas’ terrorist attack that sparked the war.

— Haley Otter and Tucker Reals contributed to this report.