Israel hopes for the best, but prepares for the worst as fate of Bibas family still uncertain

For 487 days, the unknown fate of two little boys and their mother has weighed heavy on the Israeli nation and the Jewish word at large.

Ariel, 5, and Kfir, 2, the youngest of the Israeli hostages, and their parents Yarden and Shiri were abducted from their home at Kibbutz Nir Oz by Hamas terrorists on October 7. Kfir was just nine months old at the time they were taken.

The children’s father, Yarden, 34, was released in the most recent hostage exchange on Saturday, but his wife, 33, and two sons remain in captivity, with no update on their condition.

Baby Kfir was abducted as a nine-month-old alongside his parents and brother during the October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks (Picture: Getty)[Missing Credit]

 

Following his release from Hamas captivity, Yarden’s family said that “a quarter of our heart has returned to us after 15 long months”, but stated that the father of two would be returning to an “unbearable reality”. 

The status of the three family members left in Gaza is opaque, and Yarden’s release has only raised the alarm about the health of Ariel, Kfir and Shiri. Under the international humanitarian rules, women and children should be released prior to their male relatives or any combatants.

The uncertain condition of his children and his wife has gripped the Jewish nation since a video circulated of a distraught Shiri anxiously clutching the boys as the three were seized by Hamas and taken to Gaza.

Shiri Bibas and her sons Ariel, 4, and baby Kfir, as they are abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023[Missing Credit]

On Wednesday, supporters in Israel and across the world were expected to don orange clothing, representing the fiery hair of the young brothers.

“Orange day” is the latest activist initiative designed to keep the world’s attention on the plight of the Bibas family. Graffiti in honour of Kfir, Ariel and their parents has sprung up across Israel, including one mural in Tel Aviv displaying the older brother pushing a stroller with the words: “Ariel will never be the same again.”

Yarden Bibas was released from captivity in Gaza on Saturday alongside American-Israeli Keith Siegel and Ofer Kalderon (Getty)AFP via Getty Images

Ariel, Kfir and their mother were named on the list of 33 Israeli hostages to be released in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in the first phase of the ceasefire, but it is unclear whether they will return to Israel alive.

An Israeli government spokesperson said on January 27 that eight of the remaining 26 hostages due to be released in the first, six-week phase of the deal were deceased but that Hamas had not differentiated between living and dead captives.

“The information we received is not good,” said Shiri’s cousin, Jimmy Miller, in response. “The army is afraid about the state in which they will be returned, but nothing is proven yet.”

The first phase of the deal is six weeks long, and there are still 20 hostages held in Gaza due to be returned after Ofer Kalderon, 54, Keith Siegel, 65, and Yarden Bibas were freed on Saturday.

Hamas claimed in November 2023 that the two children and their mother had been killed in an Israeli airstrike, but provided no evidence. Israel has not confirmed the claim, but it has since expressed “grave concern” for their fate.

The terror group has previously promulgated misinformation regarding hostages, publishing various claims that a captive had died, only for them to be released alive months later.

Reports by Kan, Israel’s public broadcaster, indicate that during his time in captivity, Yarden suffered grave psychological abuse including being forced to make a video soon after being told by his captors that his wife and sons had been killed, where he is seen begging for their bodies to be returned to Israel and blaming Netanyahu for their deaths. The IDF dubbed the video propaganda.

Teorrists also taunted him by incessantly bringing up his family, according to Kan, but the father of two is “clinging to hope” about their safety.

His sister-in-law, Dana Silberman-Sitton, told BBC reporters at the Sheba hospital in central Israel the family would "no longer accept uncertainty".

“We demand answers. We demand them back," she added, accusing Israel of "failing to protect" her family.

Ofri Bibas Levy, Yarden's sister, echoed her comments: "My brother returned, but my sister in-law and nephews have not. Yarden asks about them and I have no answers for him."

The family has shared that they felt their "world came crashing down" each week when Shiri, Kfir, and Ariel were left off the list of those expected to be released.

The relatives have levelled their criticism at the Israeli media for failing to convey “our pain, our struggle, and, most importantly, the crucial discussion about the complexity and tragedy of them not being on the list”.

But still, the family clings to hope. The children’s grandfather, Eli Bibas, recently spoke to a crowd at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, remarking that he was “trying not to drown in a sea of rumors, the news, the half-truths and lies around the negotiations”.