‘Monsters’: Hamas hostages brutally killed

The Israeli PM vowed revenge for what he called a “cruel and malicious violation” of the ceasefire deal over the failure to return the mum’s remains.

Hamas terrorists brutally murdered young Israeli brothers Ariel and Kfir Bibas with their bare hands, Israel said on Friday — despite the terror group long claiming the children were killed in a targeted air strike carried out by the Jewish state.

“Ariel and Kfir Bibas were murdered by terrorists in cold blood,” IDF spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said of the boys, ages 4 and 10 months respectively.

“Contrary to Hamas’s lies, Ariel and Kfir were not killed in an air strike.

“The terrorists did not shoot the two young boys — they killed them with their bare hands. Afterwards, they committed horrific acts to cover up these atrocities,” he said.

This combination of pictures created on February 20, 2025 shows posters bearing the portraits of Israeli hostages Shiri Bibas (C) and her two children Ariel (L) and Kfir (R), held in the Gaza Strip since the October 7, 2023. Picture: AFP

The shocking assertion was made after the youngsters’ remains were among those returned in four coffins to Israel — and positively identified — Thursday as part of the ongoing ceasefire deal, according to Israeli officials.

“This assessment is based on both forensic findings from the identification process and intelligence that supports these findings,” Hagari said, adding the tragic children were killed in Gaza “no later” than November 2023 — a month after Hamas’s October 7 massacre in Israel.

“We have shared these findings, intelligence and forensics with our partners around the world so they can verify it.”

A Hamas militant stands on stage near coffins during the handover of deceased hostages. Picture: REUTERS/Ramadan Abed

The Bibas family, who became global symbols of the plight of Israeli hostages, had long held out hope the boys and their mother, Shiri Bibi, were still alive after they were kidnapped by Hamas from their home in the early weeks of the war.

Without offering proof, the terror group had claimed in November 2023 that the kids and their mother were taken out in an Israeli air strike.

Israel only officially confirmed their demise this week after revealing the bodies of the boys and their mum would be among the remains that Hamas had agreed to turn over.

Israeli soldiers carry the coffins of deceased hostages. Picture: Government Press Office / GPO

While Israeli officials positively identified the remains of the boys and another hostage, 83-year-old Oded Lifshitz, the fourth casket — which was meant to hold their mother — contained an “anonymous, unidentified body.”

“During the identification process, it was determined that the additional body received is not that of Shiri Bibas, and no match was found for any other hostage,” officials said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday decried the children’s murders, saying “these perfect children … were four-years-old and less than one-year-old when the Hamas savages snatched them from their mother’s arms.

“Who kidnaps a little boy and a baby and murders them? Monsters. That’s who,” he added.

Netanyahu vowed revenge for what he called a “cruel and malicious violation” of the ceasefire deal over the failure to return the mum’s remains.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Picture: Ohad Zwigenberg / POOL / AFP

The Israeli leader accused the terror militants of acting “in an unspeakably cynical manner” by placing the unidentified remains in the coffin instead of Bibas.

“We will work with determination to bring Shiri home together with all our hostages — both living and dead — and ensure that Hamas pays the full price for this cruel and malicious violation of the agreement,” he said.

“The sacred memory of Oded Lifshitz and Ariel and Kfir Bibas will be forever enshrined in the heart of the nation. May God avenge their blood. And so we will avenge.”

News of the children’s savage demise sparked immediate outrage.

“We are shaken to the core by the horrifying findings confirming the cruel and brutal murder of Ariel and Kfir Bibas — just innocent infants — at the hands of Hamas,” the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said in a statement.

“This barbaric act is yet another undeniable testament to the unfathomable brutality of those who continue to hold our loved ones captive.”

An attendee holds a portrait placard of Israeli hostage Kfir Bibas during a gathering in tribute to Israeli hostages, called by the Representative Council of French Jewish Institutions (CRIF) at the Trocadero square in Paris on February 21, 2025. Picture: GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT / AFP

The boys and their mum became an enduring symbol of heartbreak for Israel early on in the war after footage and images emerged of Shiri clutching her two sons tightly while being surrounded by terrorists.

Separately, Shiri’s husband and the boys’ father, Yarden Bibas, was also taken hostage October 7 after he left their home in Nir Oz to protect his family.

Yarden was released alive by Hamas on February 1.

During the father’s captivity, Hamas had forced him to announce the death of his loved ones in a propaganda video.

“We extend our heartfelt condolences to the Bibas family during this incredibly difficult time and remain committed to doing everything possible to ensure Shiri and all the hostages are brought home at the earliest opportunity,” the IDF said.

This story was originally published on the New York Post and is reproduced here with permission

Originally published as ‘Monsters’: Hamas hostages brutally killed