Hamas hands over bodies of 4 Israeli captives under Gaza ceasefire deal

The bodies of Shiri Bibas, and her two children; Ariel and Kfir, and Oded Lifshitz were handed over to Red Cross representatives in Khan Younis city in the southern Gaza Strip.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office confirmed that the army and the Shin Bet domestic security service received caskets containing the four bodies from the Red Cross.

It said the bodies will be identified at the Health Ministry's Abu Kabir National Center of Forensic Medicine, after which an official notification will be given to their families.

Ahead of the handover, Hamas placed four black caskets on a stage in Khan Younis, behind which a banner was displayed depicting Netanyahu as Dracula, the infamous vampire, positioned above images of the Bibas family and Lifshitz.

Hamas has accused the Israeli government of killing the four hostages in deadly Israeli bombardment in the Gaza Strip.

The handover was part of the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire and prisoner swap deal, which took effect on Jan. 19, halting Israel’s genocidal war that has killed at least 48,300 people, mostly women and children, and left the enclave in ruins.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.