Israeli assessments indicate that the two young Israeli hostages, Ariel and Kfir Bibas, were murdered by their captors in the Gaza Strip, Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari said on Friday.
Contrary to Hamas’ claims, Ariel and Kfir were not killed in an air strike but were murdered “in cold blood,” Hagari said in a post on X and on Telegram on Friday. He added that the terrorists did not shoot the two boys “but they killed them with their bare hands.”
At the time of their abduction in October 2023, Ariel was four years old and Kfir was 10 months old.
Hagari went on to say that the terrorists subsequently committed “horrific acts” to cover up their atrocities, but did not provide further details.
The assessment was based on the forensic results of the identification of the bodies handed over on Thursday and unspecified intelligence findings.
Hamas has accused Israel of causing the deaths of the two young children and their mother, Shiri, who were abducted from Israel on October 7 2023, in an air strike the following November. The woman’s body is said to have been buried under rubble along with other victims.
