Israel PM Netanyahu decries release of wrong body as ceasefire violation; Hamas pledges to investigate

Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu vows revenge after Hamas violates ceasefire agreement, throwing its future into question.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed revenge Friday (February 21, 2025) for what he described as a “cruel and malicious violation” of the ceasefire agreement after a body that Hamas released as part of the deal was found to not be that of an Israeli mother of two young boys, as the militants had promised.

The incident has thrown the future of the fragile ceasefire into question. Six more living hostages are scheduled to be released Saturday (February 22, 2025) as part of the tenuous ceasefire that has paused over 15 months of war.

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In a statement on Friday (February 21, 2025), Hamas said it would “conduct a thorough review” of the information regarding the body, and suggested a possible mix-up of remains might have occurred due to Israeli bombing of the area where the Israeli hostages were being held, where other Palestinians were also present.

Hamas turned over four bodies Thursday (February 20, 2025) as part of the ceasefire. They were supposed to have been those of Shiri Bibas and her two young sons, Kfir and Ariel Bibas, and of Oded Lifshitz, who was 83 when he was abducted during the Hamas attack that started the war on October 7, 2023.

Israeli authorities said that while the remains of the two boys and of Lifshitz were positively identified, the fourth body was found to not be that of Shiri Bibas, but that of an unidentified woman from Gaza.

“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,” Mr. Netanyahu said.