Hamas handed over the bodies of four Israeli hostages held in Gaza, marking the first time the group has released deceased captives since October 7, 2023. The hostages included Shiri Bibas, aged 32, along with her sons Ariel, 4, and Kfir, 9 months, who were abducted from their home in Kibbutz Nir Oz, southern Israel by Hamas-led militants over 16 months ago. The fourth body belonged to Oded Lifshitz, 83 years old, who was kidnapped along with his wife, Yocheved Lifshitz, from the same location. Yocheved was released by Hamas on October 24, 2023.
Before the handover, Hamas militants placed four black caskets on a stage in Khan Younis, with a Red Cross representative signing documents before the bodies were carried into waiting Red Cross vehicles. The bodies will be taken to the Abu Kabir Institute of Forensic Medicine in Tel Aviv for examination.
