Hamas group has handed over the bodies of four Israeli hostages, to Israel as part of its ceasefire deal with the nation.
The bodies were identified as journalist and peace activist, Oded Lifshitz, Shiri Bibas, and her two children, Ariel and Kfir Bibas.
This body transfer marks the first time Hamas has returned dead captives, since the ceasefire deal took effect last month.
The four remains were handed over to the Red Cross in a black coffin during a ceremony in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis on Thursday.
In a somber ceremony, a Red Cross Commander and a Hamas commander signed a document to formalize the transfer of the coffins, which were brought on stage with banners bearing a message in Arabic and English, saying “The Return of War = The Return of Your Prisoners in Coffins”.
During the handover, Hamas released a statement that read in part, “To the families of Bibas and Lifshitz: We would have preferred your sons to return to you alive, but your army and government leaders chose to kill them instead of bringing them back.”
” They killed with them: 17,881 Palestinian children, in their criminal bombardment of the Gaza Strip, and we know that you know who is truly responsible for their departure, you were the victim of a leadership that does not care about its children.” the statement added.
Meanwhile, an Israeli official who acknowledged the body’s transfer disclosed that the country will conduct a forensic analysis to confirm the deceased identity.
In a joint statement, the Israel Defense Forces and Israel Security Agency said “According to information communicated by the Red Cross, four caskets of deceased hostages were transferred to them, and they are being taken to IDF and ISA forces in the Gaza Strip.”
Earlier Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office released a statement confirming Israel’s receipt of the bodies.
“The families of the abductees have been informed and our hearts go out to them at this difficult time. The public is asked to respect the families’ privacy and refrain from spreading rumors and information that is not official and well-founded,” it added.
Also reacting to the release, the Hostage Families Forum called for the second stage of the three-stage ceasefire to proceed, saying there is “no time to waste.”
” We received the heart-shattering news that Shiri Bibas, her children Ariel and Kfir, and Oded Lifshitz are no longer with us. This news cuts like a knife through our hearts, the families’ hearts and the hearts of people all over the world. We grieve not only for them but for the other precious lives lost, including four more deceased hostages who will be returned next week,” families of hostages said.
Six other hostages are expected to be released on Saturday and four more bodies will be returned to Israel next week.
The hostages who will be released on Saturday have been identified as Eliya Cohen, 27; Tal Shoham, 40; Omer Shem Tov, 22; Omer Wenkrat, 23; Hisham Al-Sayed, 36; and Avera Mengistu, 39, according to Israeli officials and the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.
