Under the guise of a dead Israeli hostage, Hamas handed over the body of an unknown person.
This was reported by the Israel Defense Forces.
Yesterday, February 20, Hamas handed over four dead hostages — allegedly the bodies of 83-year-old Oded Lifshitz, 32-year-old Shiri Bibas, and her two children.
But after identification, it was discovered that none of the bodies belonged to Shira Bibas or any of the hostages.
"This is an extremely serious violation by the Hamas terrorist organization, which is obligated by agreement to return the bodies of the four dead hostages. We demand that Hamas return Shiri home along with all of our hostages," the IDF said in a statement.
The Israel Defense Forces says: expert assessment and intelligence information indicate that the womanʼs sons were "brutally killed" by Hamas representatives in November 2023 — Ariel Bibas was four years old and Kfir Bibas was ten months old at the time of their deaths.
Shiriʼs husband and father of her children, Yarden Bibas, was also a Hamas hostage and was released on February 1 as part of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire agreement.
Israelʼs war in the Gaza Strip
Active hostilities between Israel and Hamas have continued since October 7, 2023, when militants of the Islamist group launched a massive rocket attack on southern and central Israel, invaded the countryʼs territory, killed hundreds of civilians, and took hostages.
On the evening of January 15, 2025, Israel and Hamas reached an agreement on a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages. This could ease tensions in the Middle East, where conflicts continue in the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and Iraq.
The media reports that in the first phase, the IDF will withdraw to within 700 meters of the Gaza Strip. Israel will release approximately 2 000 Palestinians, and Hamas will release 33 Israeli prisoners.
Six hostage exchanges have already taken place. Earlier, Israel said that eight hostages who were to be released as part of the first phase of the ceasefire agreement with Hamas had died.
And on February 9, Israel began withdrawing troops from a key corridor in the Gaza Strip.
On February 18, it was reported that Israel would begin negotiations this week on the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement, including the exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners.
Israel will not accept any scenario in which Gazaʼs terrorist groups retain weapons.
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