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CV NEWS FEED // Hamas returned the bodies of four murdered Israeli hostages to Israel Feb. 26 in exchange for the release of more than 600 Palestinian prisoners, marking the final exchange in the first phase of a temporary ceasefire agreement.
According to a report from the BBC, Israeli forensic teams confirmed the identities of the four returned hostages: Shlomo Mansour, 86, Ohad Yahalomi, 50, Tsachi Idan, 50, and Itzik Elgarat, 69. The Israeli government stated that Hamas had murdered all four men. Mansour, an Iraqi-born Israeli, was killed at Kibbutz Kissufim during the Oct. 7 massacre, and his body was taken to Gaza.
This latest handover comes as part of a broader negotiation effort aimed at securing the release of hostages still held by Hamas. With the conclusion of the first phase of the ceasefire deal, 59 Israeli hostages remain in Hamas captivity, 35 of whom are presumed dead.
Idan was kidnapped from Kibbutz Nahal Oz, where Hamas terrorists murdered his daughter, Maayan, in front of her siblings and parents. His family described his return as the conclusion of “an unbearable journey,” according to the BBC.
Elgarat was also abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz and was reportedly shot in the hand before being taken. Yahalomi, a French-Israeli dual citizen, was kidnapped along with his 12-year-old son, Eitan, who was later freed in a previous hostage exchange.
Mansour’s sister, Hadassah Lazar, told Israeli media that while her family was relieved to have his body returned, they will “continue fighting until the last hostage returns home.”
Following the handover, more than 600 Palestinian prisoners were released from Israeli jails. According to the BBC, some of the released prisoners had been convicted of deadly attacks against Israelis. Others were detained without charges during the war.
Israel had delayed the prisoner release, citing Hamas’ repeated violations of the ceasefire agreement, including the humiliation of Israeli hostages during previous exchanges and the group’s use of hostages for propaganda purposes. However, the latest handover proceeded “without Hamas ceremonies,” as Israeli officials demanded.
A previous exchange had led to outrage in Israel when Hamas mishandled the return of a hostage’s remains. The terrorist organization claimed to be returning the body of Shiri Bibas, the mother of Kfir and Ariel Bibas, two young children who were taken hostage and killed by Hamas. Instead, the body handed over to Israel on Feb. 21 was later identified as an unrelated Palestinian woman, CatholicVote reported.
The incident drew strong backlash. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned it as a breach of the ceasefire agreement. Hamas claimed they had simply made a mistake and transferred Bibas’ remains the following day.
CatholicVote reported that the funeral for Shiri, Kfir, and Ariel Bibas took place on Feb. 26. The mother and her two young sons, aged 4 years and 10 months, were laid to rest together in the same casket.
