Hamas returned bodies of 4 Israeli hostages, including a woman and her two children

As part of the ongoing ceasefire agreement aimed at ending the Gaza war, Hamas on Thursday returned the bodies of four Israeli hostages, including a woman and her two children, who were among the youngest captives taken during the unprecedented attack on Israel in October 2023.This marks the first time Hamas has handed over the remains of hostages during the fragile ceasefire. Israel has stated that the identities of the deceased will not be confirmed until DNA tests are completed. The bodies identified so far include Shiri Bibas (32), her sons Ariel (4) and Kfir, and Oded Lifshitz. Kfir, who was nine months old when abducted with his mother and brother, and Lifshitz, an 83-year-old retired journalist and peace advocate, were all taken by Hamas. In November 2023, Hamas claimed that Shiri and her sons were killed in an Israeli airstrike, without providing further details, and gave the same reason for Lifshitz’s death. However, Israeli authorities did not support this claim.