Bodies of 2 Youngest Hostages Handed Over by Hamas

UN Rights Chief Describes Parading of Coffins in Gaza as Cruel on Painful Day for Israelis

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JERUSALEM - Hamas on Feb 20 handed over the bodies of Israeli infant Kfir Bibas and his four-year-old brother Ariel, the two youngest captives taken by Hamas in its Oct 7, 2023, attack and among the most potent symbols of the trauma inflicted that day.

Red Cross vehicles drove away from the handover site in the Gaza Strip with four black coffins that had been placed on a stage. Each of the caskets had a small picture of the hostages.

Armed Hamas militants in black and camouflage uniforms surrounded the area.

UN rights chief Volker Turk called the parading of bodies in Gaza abhorrent and cruel and said it flew in the face of international law.

"Under international law, any handover of the remains of deceased must comply with the prohibition of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, ensuring respect for the dignity of the deceased and their families," he said.

After the hostages were handed over by the Red Cross, the military said the coffins were scanned for explosives before being transported to Israel.

Israelis lined the road in the rain near the Gaza border to pay their respects as the convoy carrying the coffins drove by.

"We stand here together with a broken heart, the sky is also crying with us, and we pray to see better days," said a woman who gave her name only as Efrat.

In Tel Aviv, people gathered, some weeping, at what has come to be known as Hostages Square outside Israel's defense headquarters.