Israel confirms that the IDF has received, through the Red Cross, the coffins of four deceased Israeli hostages: Shiri Bibas, Ariel Bibas, Kfir Bibas, and Oded Lifshitzs. They will be transferred to Israel's National Center for Forensic Medicine in order to officially identify the bodies and perform the autopsies.
According to Hamas, the hostages were killed as a result of Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip, in areas where the hostages were being kept. Israel has acknowledged that it has killed some of its own hostages in Gaza by mistake in the past, but has so far refused to comment on the fate of the Bibas and Lifshitz families.
The Israeli Prime Minister's office has called on the public to respect the families' privacy, and to refrain from spreading 'rumors and information that is unofficial and not well-founded'. Shiri Bibas and her two young children, as well as Oded Lifshitz, were all taken captive in the Kibbutz 'Nir Oz' on the border with Gaza on October 7th 2023. Shiri's husband and te father of her children, Yarden Bibas, survived his captivity and was released by Hamas earlier this month.
Israeli authorities state that 69 hostages remain in Gaza, of which 36 are assumed to be dead. The majority of them are believed to have been killed in violent bombing raids on the Gaza Strip.
The prisoner exchange ceremony, which took place in Northern Gaza this morning, was broadcast live on Al-Jazeera. Hundred of fighters of Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades were present, as well as fighters belonging to Saraya Al-Quds, the armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement. The ceremony, like those in the past few weeks, was intended as a clear show of force of the militant groups, showcasing that they are still present and active in Gaza, despite more than a year of fighting.