Daijiworld Media Network - Gaza

Gaza, Feb 21: A Hamas official on Friday admitted that the body of Israeli hostage Shiri Bibas might have been "mistakenly mixed" with others found under the rubble in Gaza.

Speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, the official said the group was investigating the matter. The statement comes after Israel revealed that one of the bodies handed over by Hamas on Thursday was not that of Shiri Bibas, contrary to the militant group’s claim.

Hamas had transferred the remains of four hostages, including Bibas and her two sons, Kfir and Ariel, along with an elderly captive, Oded Lifshitz. While Israeli forensic teams confirmed the identities of the two Bibas children and Lifshitz, they refuted Hamas’ claim regarding Shiri Bibas’ body.

Israel has not officially confirmed the death of Shiri Bibas. The Hamas official insisted that the group had informed mediators in November 2023 about the deaths of the Bibas family and had offered to return their bodies, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had refused.

Netanyahu, however, dismissed Hamas' claims and reaffirmed on Friday that forensic tests confirmed the Bibas children were "brutally murdered in Hamas captivity" and not killed by Israeli airstrikes.

The abduction of the Bibas family during the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attack had sparked international concern. Videos of their capture from their home near the Gaza border had drawn global attention, with nine-month-old Kfir becoming the youngest hostage in the crisis.

Their father, Yarden Bibas, who was also taken hostage, was released earlier this month.