Sydney relatives of Shiri, Kfir and Ariel Bibas hold out hope after Hamas claims they were killed

Two young children and their mother are feared dead, after Hamas claimed an Israeli airstrike killed them. Their Sydney family is trying to “stay sane” while they search for answers

The Sydney family of two children and their parents taken hostage by Hamas say they are just trying to “stay sane” while they wait to find out if their loved ones are dead or alive

Ten-month old baby Kfir Bibas and his four-year-old brother Ariel, affectionately known as “The Reds” for their ginger hair, have reportedly been killed, although the Israeli Government is yet to confirm it

Mr Bibas’ aunt Michal spent Thursday desperately trying to get information from relatives in Israel and the government.

“We have not had official word yet … we don’t know what is true and what isn’t,” Michal’s husband said at their north shore home.

Michal Keshet with her daughter Shanee and husband Eltan. Picture: Julian Andrews

Hamas has reported the children and their mother Shiri were killed in earlier Israeli air strikes, the fate of their father Yarden also kidnapped remained unknown.

Michal posted a heartbreaking picture of the two children – her great-niece and nephew – with the caption “We are waiting for you. Please come home safe” she wrote.

The devastated woman and her husband said they hoped to know more by late on Thursday night.

“Right now we are doing what we can to stay sane … it’s devastating,” Michal’s husband said.

Yarden, Shiri, Ariel and Kfir Bibas. Picture: Instagram

The Reds came to symbolise the brutality of the October 7 raid – that killed 1200 people – when the image of their mother clutching her children, including Kfir the youngest of all hostages, made headlines around the world.

The family were believed to have been passed from Hamas to Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine militants to take them to southern Gaza early in the war.

Israel said it was still investigating the Hamas claim and demanded proof while the Bibas family said they hoped the children were not being “held as a trophy”.

Despite their apparent deaths, the overall hostage release prisoner swap objective was unlikely to be derailed.

On Thursday 16 hostages were released, five teenagers, seven women and four Thai nationals.

Baby Kfir Bibas, four-year-old Ariel, and their mum, Shiri Silverman-Bibas, are shown in video footage being taken hostage by Hamas. Picture: Supplied

The women and children were dual US, Dutch, Russian and German citizens.

At the current rate of hostage release and should the ceasefire extension be confirmed, all the women and children should be freed allowing for Hamas and Israel – via Qatari negotiators – to progress talks on releasing 126 men being held captive including “several dozen” IDF soldiers.

In exchange for the males, Hamas has demanded hundreds of Palestinians including men be released from Israel jails; so far only women and children detained in Israeli jails have been part of the prisoner exchange.

Shiri Silberman-Bibas, 30, was at her home in Kibbutz Nir Oz with her son Kfir when terrorists arrived.Twitter

Kfir Bibas is 10-months-old and has spent 52 days of his life in captivity. His family is pleading for him and his four-year-old brother Ariel to be brought home.Instagram

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Tel Aviv on Thursday, his third trip to the region since the deadly Oct. 7 Hamas attack, to be part of ceasefire extension negotiations and was set to meet with Israel’s leaders.

He is also expected to visit the Israeli-occupied West Bank and to meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

“Looking at the next couple of days, we’ll be focused on doing what we can to extend the pause so we can continue to get more hostages out and more humanitarian assistance in,” Mr Blinken said. US President Joe Biden also said he hoped the ceasefire could be extended.

Relatives of the Bibas family and their supporters participate in a rally calling for the immediate release of Yarden Bibas, Shiri Bibas, and their two children, Ariel, 4 years old, and Kfir, 10 months old.

Blinken is also urging Israel narrow the zone of combat and clarify where Palestinian civilians can seek safety during any Israeli operation in the now densely populated southern Gaza, echoing international concerns over the risk of more civilian Palestinian deaths.

In the West Bank on Thursday, Israeli troops killed two Palestinian boys – an eight-year-old an a 15-year-old – during a raid on the town of Jenin. The IDF claimed they were throwing explosives but the only footage available shows them just running away from troops moving through the refugee camp.

Abbas has expressed reluctance to wanting to take over Gaza after the war and was deeply unpopular already in the West Bank due to his perceived failures in halting Jewish Settler occupation and violence in the Palestinian territory.

Originally published as Sydney relatives of Shiri, Kfir and Ariel Bibas hold out hope after Hamas claims they were killed