New returned remains of slain hostage Shiri Bibas identified as hers, says family

The family of slain hostage Shiri Bibas said on Saturday that remains returned to Israel by Hamas on Friday were identified as hers, news agency AFP reported.

Bibas was held captive by a Palestinian armed group during the October 7 attack in 2023.

“After the identification process at the Institute of Forensic Medicine, this morning we received the news we feared the most. Our Shiri was murdered in captivity and has now returned home to her sons, husband, sister, and all her family to rest,” the Bibas family said in a statement.

The family said that after 16 months of searching for answers, they finally have certainty, but it brings no comfort—only the hope of finding some closure.

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However, Israeli forensic officials who examined the body have yet to confirm the identification.

The Israeli kibbutz community of Nir Oz announced Shiri Bibas’s death on Saturday after the Red Cross handed over more human remains to Israeli authorities without confirming their identity.

Hamas handed over four bodies on Thursday, claiming they were those of Shiri Bibas, her two young sons, and an elderly hostage.

Israel earlier stated that the remains handed over by Hamas on Thursday, which were said to be those of Shiri Bibas, were actually of an unidentified woman.

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The remains of Shiri Bibas’s two sons and an elderly hostage were identified, but Israeli authorities said the fourth body was not hers. The return of remains sparked anger and grief across the country.

Hamas blames ‘mix-up’ of bodies

Hamas blamed a possible “mix-up” of bodies for the misidentification.

As a result, the Palestinian armed group handed over new remains to the Red Cross, which were later confirmed to be those of Shiri Bibas.

Hamas has claimed that an Israeli airstrike killed Bibas and her sons, Kfir and Ariel, early in the war.

Bibas family, a symbol of Israel’s hostage crisis

The Bibas family has become a symbol of Israel’s hostage crisis since the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023.

Hamas launched a large-scale surprise attack on Israel, resulting in the deaths of approximately 1,200 people. Fighters from the armed group entered southern Israel and abducted at least 240 individuals.