Hamas hands over corpses of Israeli hostages – toddlers underneath?

In the Gaza Strip, a team from the International Committee of the Red Cross (IKRK) in Chan Junis arrived at the place where Hamas is handed over to the remains of four hostages. The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced that the handover had taken place.

The ceremony in Chan Junis was seen in a live broadcast on television. Four black coffins could be seen in the live recordings, in the background the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was depicted as vampire, with the pictures of the hostages killed. Hamas had built a stage at the handover place, numerous cheering onlookers gathered in addition to dozens of masked and masked Islamists in uniforms to loud music.

Before the black coffins were invited to IKRK vehicles, the employees of the Red Cross set up white visual trends. They covered Hamas propaganda on the coffins with white towels. The IKRK had previously asked for more human dignity to hand over hostages.

According to Hamas and Israeli media, a mother and two toddlers should be among the dead. All three also have German citizenship. They are brought to the Israeli military and then to Israel by the ICRK team.

The fate of Schiri, Ariel and Kfir Bibas is still not clear. Video recordings of the frightened mother and her two red-haired sons, which were created during the kidnapping after the massacre of the Hamas terrorists in the Israeli border area on October 7, 2023.

However, the Israeli authorities have never confirmed death. Israel now wants to check the identity of the corpses. According to Israeli, the forensic investigation could take some time. The duration of the identification process also depends on the condition of the corpses, several media reported on Wednesday, citing health minister Uriel Busso. Busso therefore emphasized that Israel also wanted to determine the causes of death.

In November 2023, Hamas announced that the boys and their mother were killed in an Israeli air raid. From an Israeli perspective, however, there is no final confirmation for your death. However, there is great concern about the fate of the three, it was officially said.

The father of the children, Jarden Bibas, was recently released. “Unfortunately, my family has not returned to me,” he said after his return to Israel. “My light is still there (in the Gaza Strip), and as long as they are there, everything is dark here.”

The youngest was still a baby in his kidnapping. At the time he was kidnapped, he was not yet able to walk and say “mom”, his mother’s cousin recently told the German Press Agency. His older brother still believed in superheroes, said Jimmy Miller.

Hamas had announced on Tuesday that they wanted to hand over the four dead hostages to Israel. Netanyahu’s office confirmed the agreement with the Islamist organization. In return, Israel reports on all women and minors who have been arrested since the beginning of the Gaza War in October 2023 and who are not said to have been involved in the armed fight against Israel.

According to Hamas, four other bodies are to be handed over next week. In addition, six other hostages are to be released on Saturday as part of the agreement between Israel and the Islamist organization.

Since the beginning of the ceasefire in the Gaza War on January 19, Islamists in the Gaza Strip have released 19 hostages in several rounds. In addition, five Thai people kidnapped from Israel were released regardless of the agreement. The multi -stage agreement between Israel and the Hamas stipulates that during a first six -week phase, a total of 33 hostages, including eight dead, are released in an exchange for 1,904 Palestinian prisoners.

The first phase of the deal should end in one and a half weeks. According to the agreement, both warring parties have so far – contrary to the agreement – have not yet conducted serious negotiations on the second phase of the deal. It should lead to a final end of the war and to the release of the remaining hostages. Israeli media reported, referring to Foreign Minister Gideon Saar that the talks should start “this week”.

The war was triggered by the attack by Hamas and other extremist groups on Israel on October 7, 2023, in which around 1200 people were killed and more than 250 Israelis were dragged into the Gaza strips. Since then, according to the health authority controlled by the Hamas, almost 48,300 people have been killed, including many women and minors.

Note: This article has been updated and further information was added.