DaysofPal- The Bibas family has confirmed that Hamas has returned the remains of Shiri Bibas, a day after the Palestinian group handed over an unidentified body.
On Friday, Hamas released the remains of Bibas with her community, Kibbutz Nir Oz, verifying her identity on Saturday, just hours before the seventh hostage-prisoner exchange under the truce. However, the Bibas family stated that Israeli authorities provided no details on the circumstances surrounding the deaths of Shiri and her two young sons, Kfir and Ariel.
Under the ceasefire agreement, Hamas had committed to handing over the bodies of Shiri Bibas, her children, and a fourth captive. The group said that the family was killed in an Israeli airstrike in November 2023. However, when four bodies were delivered, Israel later determined that one of the remains did not belong to Bibas.
Hamas acknowledged the potential for a “mix-up of bodies,” blaming Israeli airstrikes for the confusion.
Basem Naim, a member of Hamas’s political bureau, stated that Israeli bombardments had caused mass casualties, making it difficult to distinguish between the remains of Israeli captives and Palestinian victims buried under the rubble.
“We confirm that it is not in our values or our interest to keep any bodies or not to abide by the covenants and agreements that we sign,” Naim said in a statement.
The incident underscores the ongoing tensions surrounding the ceasefire deal, which has temporarily halted hostilities in Gaza since last month.
Ismail al-Thawabta, director of the Hamas-run Gaza Government Media Office, said Netanyahu “bears full responsibility for killing her and her children.”
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