OAN’s Elizabeth Volberding
5:50 PM – Wednesday, November 29, 2023
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced that it was evaluating a Hamas claim that the youngest Israeli hostage, 10-month-old Kfir Bibas, as well as his brother and mother were killed during an Israeli airstrike in Gaza.
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On Wednesday, the terrorist group Hamas made a claim, without providing evidence, that 10-month-old Kfir Bibas had been murdered alongside his 4-year-old brother, Ariel, and their mother, Shiri, in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza prior to the truce that began six days ago.
The three Israelis have been held hostage in Gaza by Hamas since the start of the war on October 7th.
Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ armed wing, made an announcement saying that the three Israeli hostages were killed in an Israeli bombardment. They have yet to provide evidence of their deaths.
The IDF stated that it was assessing Hamas’ claim. However, relatives of the three Israeli hostages said that they were “waiting for the news to be confirmed or hopefully refuted soon” about their family members.
“During the Hamas massacre of October 7th, the Bibas family, including 10-month-old Kfir Bibas, his 4-year-old brother Ariel Bibas, and their mother Shiri Bibas, were kidnapped alive into Gaza,” the IDF said in a statement. “The barbarism and cruelty of Hamas is on full display to the world. IDF representatives spoke with the Bibas family following the recent reports and are with them at this difficult time. The IDF is assessing the accuracy of the information.”
“Hamas is wholly responsible for the security of all hostages in the Gaza Strip. Hamas must be held accountable. Hamas’ actions continue to endanger the hostages, which include nine children. Hamas must immediately release our hostages,” the IDF added.
During an interview with Israel’s Channel 12, Shiri’s cousin, Jimmy Miller, stated that the IDF had alerted the family of Hamas’ allegations.
“Hamas took them alive, Hamas is the one responsible for their health, and Hamas needs to return them back to us alive. We don’t care if they transfer them to someone else, or to another entity, they are exclusively responsible to bring them back to us alive and well,” Miller said.
The Bibas family made a statement regarding their family members who have been held hostage and the statement was provided by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.
“Our family is updated on the latest Hamas publication. We are waiting for the news to be confirmed or hopefully refuted soon by military officials,” said the Bibas family. “We thank the people of Israel for the warm embrace but ask to maintain our privacy at this complex time.”
This comes after Hamas stated that they are willing to lengthen the truce for four additional days. They claim that this would allow them time to locate and release more Israeli hostages held by other terror organizations.
The deadly conflict between Israel and Hamas, which was sparked by the terrorist group’s October 7th massacre of 1,200 Israelis and foreigners, is scheduled to end early on Thursday following a six-day ceasefire.
Ten more prisoners are also set to be released on Wednesday night before the temporary truce ends at 7 a.m. on Thursday. As of today, 89 prisoners total have been freed.
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