Hamas has announced that on Thursday they will hand over the bodies of four Israeli hostages to Israel, including a mother and her two young children. One of these children was kidnapped on 7 October 2023, he was only nine months old, due to which he was the youngest among the hostages. The bodies to be handed over include Shiri Bibas, his two children – Ariel Bibas and Kafir Bibas – and Oded Lifsitz.
Stressful situation between Hamas and Israel
Hamas had already claimed that Shiri Bibas and his two children died in the Israeli air strike. However, this claim was not accepted by Israel. During the October 7 attack, Hamas abducted the entire Bibas family, while Shiri Bibas’s husband, Yorden Bibas, has recently been released. On this incident, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that “this has broken the heart of the whole of Israel.”
Upcoming deal and future path
On Saturday, Hamas will also release six other Israeli hostages, in return for which Israel will release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. Under the first phase of ceasefire agreement, 24 living hostages have been returned to Israel. But the body of the Bibas family has been handed over a wave of mourning and anger in Israel. This has also put a question mark on the second phase of the ceasefire agreement, as the conversation between the two sides continues and Israel has indicated that the war may begin again when the situation deteriorated.
