The al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, announced on Wednesday their intention to hand over the bodies of four Israeli hostages. This group includes three members of the Bibas family and retired journalist Oded Lifshitz.
Abu Obeida, the spokesman for al-Qassam, issued a press statement saying, \"the bodies of the Bibas family will be handed over Thursday, in addition to the body of the detained Israeli prisoner Oded Lifshitz.\"
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office identified the hostages as Shiri Bibas, who was abducted from her home in Nir Oz near the Gaza border, along with her two sons, Kfir, nine months old at the time, and Ariel, four years old. Shiri's husband, Yarden Bibas, was also kidnapped but was released in early February as part of a ceasefire agreement.
The body of 84-year-old Oded Lifshitz, a retired journalist, will also be returned. Lifshitz was taken from his home in Nir Oz alongside his wife, Yocheved Lifshitz, who was released by Hamas in October 2023.
Prime Minister Netanyahu remarked, \"Tomorrow will be a very difficult day for the state of Israel. A shocking day, a day of sorrow. We are bringing home four of our beloved hostages, fallen hostages.\" He added, \"We grieve, we hurt, but we are also determined to ensure that something like this will never happen again.\"
These four individuals were among the 251 people kidnapped during the Hamas-led attack on Israeli communities on October 7, 2023.
Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the groups holding the hostages in Gaza, have claimed that the hostages were killed in Israeli airstrikes on the territory.
As part of the first phase of a ceasefire agreement effective from January 19, Israel is expected to release Palestinian women and minors held in Israeli jails in exchange for the return of the bodies.
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
