Thousands Mourn as Israel Holds Funeral for Bibas Family Killed in Gaza

• Feb 26, 2025

Nationwide Grief as Reports Emerge of Renewed Ceasefire Deal Between Israel and Hamas

Thousands of Israelis gathered along the streets on Wednesday to pay their respects during the funeral procession of two young children and their mother, who were held hostage and killed in captivity in Gaza.

The emotional farewell for Ariel, Kfir, and Shiri Bibas took place amid reports that Israel and Hamas had reached an agreement to reinstate a ceasefire. Under the reported deal, Hamas would return the bodies of additional hostages in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.

Hamas handed over the bodies of the Bibas family last week, claiming they had been killed in Israeli airstrikes. However, an Israeli autopsy determined that the children had been murdered by their captors, who then mutilated their bodies to make it appear as though they had been victims of bombings.

The private funeral was held in Tzohar, a town near the Gaza border and the kibbutz of Nir Oz, where the family had lived. Though the ceremony itself was closed to the public, thousands of mourners lined the roads from Rishon LeZion, waving Israeli flags and yellow banners—the symbol of families and supporters demanding the release of hostages.

Shiri and her children were buried alongside her parents, who had been killed in the Hamas attack on Nir Oz and other Israeli communities on October 7, 2023. The father of the children, Yarden Bibas, had also been taken hostage during the attack but was freed in a recent ceasefire deal. It was only upon his release that he learned of his family’s deaths.

The Bibas family has strongly criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government for publicly disclosing graphic details about the children’s deaths. “This is outright abuse of a family that has already been enduring hell for 16 months,” said Ofri Bibas, Yarden’s sister.

As the funeral procession passed through the streets, Ofri described the scene as a reflection of a country in pain. “Through the car window, I see a broken country; we won’t recover until the last hostage returns home.”

During her eulogy, she condemned the government for prioritizing military actions over negotiations that could have secured the release of hostages sooner. “Our disaster—both as a family and as a nation—should never have happened. It must not, must not happen again,” she said. “They could have saved you, but they chose revenge.”

Concerns about the fragile ceasefire intensified over the weekend when Hamas released six Israeli hostages, but Israel delayed the release of 602 Palestinian detainees as part of the exchange. The Israeli government accused Hamas of turning hostage handovers into propaganda events, while Hamas responded by threatening to withdraw from mediation talks and cancel a planned handover of four additional bodies.

On Wednesday, Israeli officials confirmed reports from Egyptian media that a new agreement had been reached. Under this deal, the bodies of hostages would be exchanged for Palestinian prisoners, but the transfer would take place in stages. Unlike previous exchanges, Hamas stated that no public ceremonies would accompany the latest release.

As Israel continues to grapple with the aftermath of the conflict, the grief and anger expressed at the Bibas family’s funeral serve as a reminder of the human cost of the war and the ongoing calls for the safe return of the remaining hostages.