On Friday evening, Hamas handed over a body to the Red Cross, which is now being transported to an IDF unit. The terrorist organization claims it is the body of Shiri Bibas.
Israeli authorities are preparing in accordance with reports from the Red Cross, confirming that a casket was received from Hamas. The Home Front Command's operations center has been activated, and teams from the National Center for Forensic Medicine have been dispatched. The casket will be transported through the Kissufim Crossing in central Gaza, and an autopsy will be conducted overnight.
Hamas' move was not coordinated with Israel, which had instructed the Red Cross to retrieve the casket. The Red Cross subsequently informed Israel of the transfer.
The National Center for Forensic Medicine, under the Israeli Health Ministry, is prepared to conduct identification tests. Forensic teams, including medical examiners and laboratory staff, are ready to provide results as quickly as possible while remaining sensitive to the Bibas family.
Dr. Gilad Bodenheimer, head of the Mental Health Division at the Health Ministry, commented on the uncertainty surrounding the situation. "These are difficult hours filled with uncertainty. We hope that Hamas is not deceiving us this time. Uncertainty can cause distress and significant anxiety. To cope, we naturally seek any certainty we can find."
Earlier, Hamas issued an official statement in response to Israel's discovery that the casket delivered the previous day did not contain the body of Shiri Bibas. DNA tests did not match, constituting a clear violation of the terms of the hostage deal.
Hamas insisted that it remains "committed to the ceasefire agreement at all levels" and claimed to have no interest in violating its terms. "We have received Israel's claims from the mediators, and we are examining them with complete seriousness. We will announce the results of our investigation," the terrorist organization said.
The statement also noted that "an investigative process will take place," after which Hamas will update mediators on its findings. Additionally, Hamas demanded the return of the transferred remains, claiming they belonged to a Palestinian woman killed in the war.
Simultaneously, Hamas has spread false claims suggesting that "remains may have been mixed."
