Shiri Bibas’s body not returned as remains ‘mixed’ in rubble, Hamas says – with Netanyahu warning group ‘will pay’

Hamas has said the remains of hostage Shiri Bibas could have been mixed with others during Israeli airstrikes.

Israel said Shiri was not among the four bodies handed over on Thursday and it had received an “anonymous body without identification”.

Sky News has asked the country’s military to provide evidence, but it has refused to comment further.

Hamas claims Shiri and her children were all killed in airstrikes near the start of the war.

Ms Bibas was kidnapped with her sons – four-year-old Ariel, and nine-month-old Kfir – from the Niz Or kibbutz during the group’s terror attack on Israel in October 2023.

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed the bodies of the two boys had been positively identified but said they had been murdered with “bare hands”.

Israel said the failure to hand over their mother’s body was a violation of the Gaza ceasefire deal.

“It was found that the additional body received was not that of Shiri Bibas, and no match was found for any other abductee. It is an anonymous body without identification,” said the IDF.

“This is a very serious violation by the Hamas terrorist organisation, which is required by the agreement to return four dead abductees.

“We demand that Hamas return Shiri home along with all of our abductees.”

Hamas claimed there was the “possibility of an error or overlap in the bodies” which may have been caused by Israel “targeting and bombing the place where the family was with other Palestinians”.

It said it was dealing with the allegations with “complete seriousness” and that it would announce the results “clearly”.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would make Hamas pay for failing to release Shiri’s body.

“We will act with determination 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,” he said in a video statement.

The body of journalist and peace activist Oded Lifshitz, who was 83 when he was abducted, was also repatriated on Thursday.

Hamas handed over the remains as part of the ceasefire agreement reached with Israel last month that’s seen living Israeli hostages swapped with Palestinian prisoners.

The four bodies were transferred in black coffins in a carefully orchestrated public display involving dozens of armed Hamas militants.

Israelis lined the road in the rain near the Gaza border to pay their respects as the convoy drove by.

In Tel Aviv, people gathered, some crying, in a public square opposite Israel’s defence headquarters that has come to be known as Hostages’ Square.

Prime Minister Netanyahu said the sight of the four coffins meant “more than ever” that Israel had to ensure there was no repeat of the 7 October attack and that Hamas must be eradicated.

“Our loved ones’ blood is shouting at us from the soil and is obliging us to settle the score with the despicable murderers, and we will,” he warned.

Israel’s president, Isaac Herzog, said “the hearts of an entire nation” were in “tatters”.

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The United Nations human rights chief, Volker Turk, said the parading of the four bodies by Hamas was “cruel” and “inhumane”.

He said: “Under international law, any handover of the remains of deceased must comply with the prohibition of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, ensuring respect for the dignity of the deceased and their families.”

The Bibas family has become a powerful symbol of the 251 Israelis kidnapped on 7 October – not least because Kfir was the youngest taken.

The children’s father, Yarden Bibas, was released on 1 February.

Sombre moment for Israelis – as Hamas uses opportunity for propaganda

Diana Magnay

International correspondent

@DiMagnaySky

The return of the bodies of four Israeli hostages is a “sombre moment” for everybody in Israel and Jews across the world, our international correspondent Diana Magnay says.

She says the two young boys, Ariel and Kfir, “really became a symbol of the tremendous suffering 7 October caused”.

“Now, to have them returned back in this way is tragic.”

Referring to the scenes of coffins being transferred to the Red Cross, Magnay says Hamas has chosen to use this “as a propaganda opportunity”.

“They have missiles on the stage where the four coffins were, saying they were killed by US bombs,” she explains.

She says Hamas’s main message is “this was caused by you, you should take responsibility for it”.

She adds that 7 October was caused by Hamas, and has brought “untold suffering to both Israel and Palestinians”.

Meanwhile, six living hostages, the final due to be freed under the first phase of the Gaza truce deal, have been named.

Those due to walk free on Saturday are: Eliya Cohen, Omer Shem Tov, Tal Shoham, Omer Wenkert, Hisham al Sayed and Avera Mengisto.

Mr Mengisto and Mr Sayed are civilians who entered Gaza a decade ago and have been held there ever since.

The Hamas prisoners’ media office said Israel would be releasing another 602 Palestinian prisoners and detainees as part of the swap.

The truce has provided a vital pause in the fighting that’s devastated Gaza and left tens of thousands dead.

At least 1,200 people were killed in the Hamas attack that started the war.

Since then, the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry says more than 48,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks. Its figures do not differentiate between civilians and fighters.

The start of negotiations for a second phase of the ceasefire is expected in the coming days.