Israel has released its conclusions after an investigation into the return of four bodies by Hamas—claiming one of them is not who the terror group claims it is. Three bodies, Oded Lifshitz, who was 83 when captured, and two baby bothers who captured the nation, Ariel and Kfir Bibas, 4- and 10-months-old, were correctly identified. However, after testing by the National Institute of Forensic Medicine and the Israel Police, the body of the boys' mother, Shiri, was determined to be someone else, the Israeli military said. The returned body does not match any other Israel hostage, it continued. “This is an anonymous, unidentified body.” Forensic testing and intelligence suggests the boys were murdered in Nov. 2023, the military added. “This is a violation of utmost severity by the Hamas terrorist organization, which is obligated under the agreement to return four deceased hostages. We demand that Hamas return Shiri home along with all our hostages,” the Israeli military said in a statement. The boys' father and Shiri’s husband, Yarden Bibas, was released by Hamas alive under the January 2025 ceasefire deal. He spent 484 days in captivity.
