The body of a woman who was presumed to have been one of four dead hostages killed by Hamas and handed over to Israel this week was positively identified Saturday morning.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters confirmed the identification of Shiri Bibas, who was returned to Israel on Friday after Hamas initially instead handed over a Palestinian woman from Gaza on Thursday.
Hamas on Friday handed over a coffin carrying Bibas’ remains to the Red Cross, which turned the coffin over to Israeli authorities. The coffin was then taken to the National Institute of Forensic Medicine for identification.
“Last night, our Shiri was returned home,” the family said in a statement. “Following the identification process at the Institute of Forensic Medicine, we received this morning the news we had dreaded – our Shiri was murdered in captivity and has now returned home to her sons, husband, sister, and all her family for rest.”
“Despite our fears about their fate, we continued to hope that we would get to embrace them, and now we are in pain and heartbroken,” it continued. “For 16 months we sought certainty, and now that it’s here, it brings no comfort, though we hope it marks the beginning of closure.”
The family said “Shiri was a wonderful mother to Ariel and Kfir, a loving partner to Yarden, a devoted sister and aunt, and an amazing friend.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday that Hamas would “pay the full price” for allegedly handing over the body of a Palestinian woman from Gaza instead of Bibas’ remains.
The Israeli military earlier said it had positively identified the remains of Bibas’ two sons — Ariel and Kfir Bibas — along with Oded Lifshitz. Four bodies were returned on Thursday, but the one expected to be holding Shiri Bibas was not holding any hostage.
Hamas said it “has no interest in withholding any bodies in its possession.” The terror group said the dead hostages it handed over on Thursday had been killed by an Israeli airstrike in November 2023 and that the bodies could have been misidentified due to bombardments in the area.
After the return of Shiri Bibas, the family is calling for the return of the remaining hostages held in Gaza. Six are being released on Saturday.
“In this difficult hour, we continue to demand and call for the immediate return of the remaining hostages still in captivity. There is no more important goal. There can be no rehabilitation without them,” the Bibas family said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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