Thousands of Israelis lined the highways as the bodies of an Israeli mother Shiri Bibas and her two children who were killed in Gaza were transported to their burial. (Pics/AFP)
Updated On: 2025-02-26 05:27 PM IST
Compiled by : Joy Manikumar
Shiri Bibas was kidnapped with her two sons — Ariel, 4, and Kfir, 9 months old — from their home on Kibbutz Nir Oz on Oct. 7, 2023
Hamas released their bodies last week as part of a fragile ceasefire deal
Though initially the militant group did not release the correct body for Shiri Bibas, testing had confirmed the identities of the three others but found the remains said to be the mother was instead an unidentified Palestinian woman
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Hamas of a "cruel and malicious violation" of the ceasefire and vowed revenge
Yarden Bibas, their father, was taken separately, and released during the ceasefire last month
Hamas says the three were killed in an Israeli airstrike in November 2023
Israeli military spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari denies this and said Ariel and Kfir Bibas were killed by their captors
The three will be buried on Kibbutz Nir Oz on Wednesday afternoon
The breakthrough appeared in ceasefire to clear the way for the return of the bodies of four more dead hostages and hundreds of additional prisoners scheduled to be released under the ceasefire
The prisoners previously slated for release 'will be released simultaneously with the bodies of the Israeli prisoners who were agreed to be handed over,' along with the release of a new set of Palestinian prisoners, the statement said