Displaying items by tag: Shiri Bibas

Hamas has returned the bodies of four Israeli hostages under the Gaza ceasefire deal: Shiri Bibas and her two children, Ariel (4) and Kfir (9 months), along with peace activist Oded Lifshitz (83). The IDF transported the bodies to Israel for identification, while mourning swept across the nation. President Isaac Herzog expressed deep sorrow and asked for forgiveness for failing to bring all hostages home alive. Negotiations on a second ceasefire phase are set to resume this week, aiming for the release of all remaining hostages. However, Israel insists it will not withdraw forces until Hamas is eliminated, while Hamas demands an end to the war before releasing further captives. Meanwhile, Hamas used the hostage handover for propaganda, displaying missiles alongside the coffins and blaming Benjamin Netanyahu for their deaths. The Hamas group stated they would have preferred them to return alive, but accused Israel of choosing war over negotiations.