Israel has officially identified the two Bibas boys Ariel and Kfir but announced the third body returned this morning is not their mother Shiri.
Experts used forensic evidence and intelligence and assessed that the two young boys had been “brutally murdered” by terrorists in November 2023.
But tests at Israel’s Abu Kabir Forensic Institute determined that the third body was not Shiri, and no match was found with any other hostage.
Ariel was 4-years-old and Kfir was 10-months-old when they were murdered.
“This is a very serious violation by the Hamas terrorist organization, which is required by the agreement to return four dead hostages,” said the IDF.
“We demand that Hamas return Shiri home along with all of our hostages.”
“We share the deep sorrow of the Bibas family at this difficult time and will continue to make every effort to return Shiri and all the hostages home as soon as possible.”
It is news that will trigger an outpouring of grief and anger in Israel and across the Jewish world.
The two Bibas boys have over the past 16 months become the most recognisable victims of the October 7 terror attacks on Israel.
A convoy carrying the bodies of Ariel and Kfir, 85-year-old Oded Lifshitz, all from the Nir Oz kibbutz, and an unknown deceased person, had arrived at Israel’s forensics centre in Tel Aviv on Thursday for DNA checks and autopsy procedures.
But footage of the kidnapping of the trio, by a Palestinian terror group linked to Hamas on October 7 has sparked fury and revulsion, especially as some pro-Palestine activists have attempted to justify the massacre as legitimate “resistance”.
At just nine months, Kfir was the youngest hostage kidnapped into Gaza and the youngest to have been killed.
His brother Ariel was aged four at the time of the attack, while Shiri was 32 years old.
The IDF statement added:”According to the assessment of professional officials, based on the intelligence available to us and forensic findings from the identification process, Ariel and Kfir Bibas were brutally murdered by terrorists in captivity in November 2023.
“During the identification process, it was determined that the additional body received is not that of Shiri Bibas, and no match was found for any other hostage.
“This is an anonymous, unidentified body. This is a violation of utmost severity by the Hamas terrorist organisation, which is obligated under the agreement to return four deceased hostages.
“We demand that Hamas return Shiri home along with all our hostages. Ariel Bibas was four years old at the time of his death, and Kfir Bibas was ten months old at the time of his death.
“They were abducted with their mother, Shiri Bibas, from their home in Nir Oz. Yarden Bibas, Ariel and Kfir’s father, went out to protect them and was abducted prior to the abduction of Shiri and the children.
“Yarden returned as part of the agreement for the return of the hostages on February 1, 2025.
“We extend our heartfelt condolences to the Bibas family during this incredibly difficult time and remain committed to doing everything possible to ensure Shiri and all the hostages are brought home at the earliest opportunity.”
A photo of Kfir clutching a pink elephant toy and looking directly at the camera with a toothless smile was seen at protests across the globe over the past 16 months.
His brother Ariel is also often shown in a photo taken after he had a haircut, still wrapped in the hairdresser’s cape.
Father of the boys Yarden was among those released from earlier this month after 484 days in captivity.
Hamas had claimed without any evidence that they had been killed in November 2023 after an Israeli air strike
It is claim never confirmed by Israel.
Shiri Bibas; Yarden, holding four-year-old Ariel (also pictured right) and nine-month-old Kfir. Pic: Yifat Zailer
Early on Thursday morning, in choreographed scenes that sparked widespread condemnation, four black coffins were laid out on a stage decked with propaganda in Khan Younis in southern Gaza in front of crowds of spectators.
The Israeli army held a ceremony attended by a rabbi upon receiving the bodies, and then transferred them to caskets draped in the Israeli flag before they were driven to Tel Aviv.
The IDF had earlier informed the family of Oded Lifshitz that he was murdered in Palestinian Islamic Jihad captivity, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office said.
Israel’s forensic institute said he was murdered over a year ago.
