Israeli Hostage: Netanyahu Killed My Babies

Earlier this week, Hamas returned the bodies of four Israeli hostages. Among them were two infants, Kfir and Ariel Bibas.  The body of their mother, Shiri Bibas, was supposed to be with them.  But Israeli forensic examination determined that the body Hamas released was not hers, but that of a Palestinian woman killed in an Israeli attack. UPDATE: Later, a separate Gaza armed group released her body.

The return of the Bibas family’s bodies is especially fraught for Israelis, since the two children were the youngest hostages. Their pictures were held aloft at every Hostage protest.  When the bodies were returned, both the Bibas family and all of Israel anticipated their funeral and putting this horror to rest.  The mistaken body exchanged by Hamas has reopened the wound.

Bibi Netanyahu, never one to lose an opportunity to press his interest, has railed against Hamas:

The cruelty of the Hamas monsters knows no bounds,” Netanyahu said in a statement Friday. “Not only did they kidnap the father, Yarden Bibas, the young mother, Shiri, and their two small babies. In an unspeakably cynical manner, they did not return Shiri to her little children, the little angels, and they put the body of a Gazan woman in a coffin.

“We will…ensure that Hamas pays the full price for this cruel and evil violation of the agreement,” he added.

This is all rich coming from Mr. Nyet, who said No to every ceasefire deal put before him, while continuing the genocidal barrage which killed many of the hostages.  In fact, the lives of the Israeli hostages were sacrificed on the altar of Bibi’s megalomaniacal ego.

In contrast, the Bibas family  has rejected calls for revenge. Instead they want the hostages, living or dead, home.  Yarden’s sister’s statement was a disavowal of Netanyahu’s harsh rhetoric:

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, we did not receive an apology from you in this painful moment. For Ariel and Kfir’s sake, and for Yarden’s sake, we are not seeking revenge right now. We are asking for Shiri. Save the lives of the living hostages, and return all the fallen for burial,” she said.

The day before the funeral, Ofri excoriated Netanyahu: ““If I could say one thing…on behalf of the Bibas family: Just shut up,” wrote Ofri Bibas.   A remarkable rebuke from a grieving sister-in-law to a prime minister.

In her eulogy at the funeral of Shiri, Kfir and Ariel, Ofri Bibas, Yarden’s sister offered these angry words for the politicians and general bent on bloodlust and revenge:

This catastrophe never needed to happen. And it must never happen again. They could have saved you but they preferred vengeance. We’ve lost [squandered your deaths] just as our victory will never happen.

Apology [from the government] would mean taking responsibility, and a commitment to behave differently – learning from mistakes. There is no purpose for apology unless failures are investigated and all the officials take responsibility.

Our struggle will be eternal. We must always sanctify life. Love of our fellow wo/man. To honor the truth and never to leave anyone behind. Otherwise we have lost who we are.

On November 29th 2023, Hamas announced they were killed by an ISRAELI strike.
The next day, Yarden himself confirmed this in a video released by Al-Qassam. pic.twitter.com/02Ogq9sizk

— Farouq ☪☭🇵🇸 (@camaradafarouq) February 18, 2025

Yarden, the infants’ father, who himself was a hostage released earlier, has denounced Netanyahu in a cri de coeur video (see above), blaming him for the deaths because he refused to sign a ceasefire, which would have brought his babies and wife back alive. Though the video was made while in Hamas captivity, neither he nor the familiy have made any statements that contradict what he says here.

The Bibases released this statement published by Ynet:

The Bibas family’s message to Netanyahu after he exposed details about the murder of Shiri, Ariel and Kfir [against its wishes]:

We turned to a number of official bodies including the prime minister’s office and the hasbara apparatus in order to make clear that the decision to publish any details concerning the horrible murders, is solely the family’s. It will tolerate no pressure to exploit the murders for so-called public purposes. This request is also addressed to the whole public: please do not participate or cooperate in the race to publish these difficult, damaging and private matters.

In these difficult times, when the Bibas family–and with it the entire nation–mourns the murders of its family; and at a time when the family is preparing for the furneral and shiva for our dear souls; and before receiving the autopsy file from the state forensic lab; the family continues to receive, to its consternation, repeated approaches–from State officials, media outlets, and private individuals– for propaganda purposes, or to fulfill the public’s voyeuristic needs; in particular regarding publication of details of the murders. All this in spite of the family’s request for respecting its privacy.

A single day after the Bibases sent this cease and desist letter to Netanyahu, he offered his usual dog and pony show of mock indignation, in which he not only repeated the same claims they ordered him not to make, but he doubled down, adding claims that Hamas not only strangled the babies, but “crushed their tiny heads.” This is a repeat of the lurid Israeli claims after 10/7 about rape, beheaded babies in ovens, etc. None of these claims were substantiated. None. Though I’m not clairvoyant, I believe that most of the claims regarding the Bebas deaths will also be found false.

Despite making these outrageous claims, the family told the Israeli public that the State pathologist report had not been given to them.  They added that no state official informed them of claims of mutilation. Clearly, it does not trust claims by the IDF of such atrocities. Further, the family told ministers to stay away from the funeral, emphasizing its disgust with Netanyahu and his government.

In a cease and desist letter sent by the family’s lawyer on its behalf, it warns against anyone who takes advantage of its suffering (implicitly referring to Netanyahu):

We trust that the demands of the family  will be dealt with diligently and that officials subordinate to you will act accordingly. To the extent that this does not happen, my clients will not hesitate to take all legal remedies available to them.

The Bibases also explicitly reject Netanyahu’s exploitation of the their suffering to sabotage the ceasefire and release of prisoners.  When Israel and the world saw media images of the coffins of the Bibas family carried by Hamas fighters to the Red Cross vehicles, Netanyahu flew into a rage.  He saw an opportunity to nurse the outrage of Israelis and score points with his Judeo-Nazi ministers.

After the release of the Bibas bodies, Israel was supposed to simultaneously release 603 Palestinian hostages.  Netanyahu refused to do so, claiming that Hamas was creating a spectacle of the handover of hostages and bodies. This is precisely the political opportunism the family had rejected. For him, the family doesn’t matter. Its suffering doesn’t matter. All that matters is his malignant narcissist ego.

After violating the ceasefire, Netanyahu tried another strategem.  He offered to release the Palestinians if Hamas released the next group of Israelis it was slated to hand over this coming weekend.  Again, this is a violation of the protocols, which called for reciprocal, staged releases.

Global media have falsely called this decision a ‘delay’ or a ‘pause.’ It is nothing of the sort.  It is a flagrant violation of the ceasefire.  It could be a signal that Israel will back out of the deal entirely.  Already, stage two of the ceasefire is in danger, because Netanyahu has refused for past three weeks to begin negotiations regarding its implementation.

Israeli state forensic findings suspect

The initial claims about the death of the Bibas family members originated with Adm. Daniel Hagari, the IDF chief spokesperson. He claimed that the forensic pathologist claimed that the babies had been strangled, and that afterward their bodies had been mutilated. This of course aroused a frenzy of outrage among Israelis.

However, this version is suspect because in the past Israel’s state pathologist has perpetrated hoaxes on the public.  I’ve made a screenshot of a list painstakingly compiled by Adam Weinreb (here is the link to his full thread). He focuses in particular on the equally lurid claims regarding Israeli bodies examined after 10/7.  The furor which ensued served as a catalyst for the Israeli genocide that followed.

It’s no wonder that the family’s lawyer demanded that the government (including Netanyahu) stop engaging in inciting claims or speculation about the nature of the deaths of their family members.  He further directs the pathologist to forward a copy of his forensic examination so that it can be “transferred for further examination.”  This implies the family will engage an independent pathologist to review the findings and conduct his/her own forensic exam.  In other words, the Bibases do not trust any official claims or statements by the State, as well they shouldn’t.  Including claims that Hamas killed their loved ones.

Captive and Captor Shared a Fate

A closer examination of the conditions of captivity reveal–given the massive destruction caused by Israel– just how complicated it has been for Hamas to identify and return bodies of the hostages. Their captors fared no better than they did. Both were in hiding. Both suffered under excruciating conditions. Both had limited food. Therefore it should be no surprise that this mistake occured:

“It is likely that Mrs Bibas’ body was mistakenly mixed with others found under the rubble,” the [Hamas] official said on condition of anonymity, adding that the group was “investigating” the issue.

…”Mediators were informed at the time [of their death in November 2023] and it was also announced in a statement when the Bibas family was killed along with their captors in an Israeli air strike,” the official said.

“Hamas had offered to hand over their bodies in November 2023, but (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu refused at the time.”

In a separate statement it added:

“We point out the possibility of an error or overlap in the bodies, which may be the result of the occupation targeting and bombing the place where the family was with other Palestinians,” Hamas added.

There is a dueling narrative regarding the Bibas deaths. Hamas claims they were killed in an Israeli air strike.  Israel claims the children were killed by their captors. It added that they were “murdered with their [captors’] bare hands.”  I find this claim to be unbelievable. To Hamas, these children would be extremely valuable in a trade for Palestinian captives.  Harming them, let along murdering them, would be unthinkable. Further, Yarden Bibas is correct, the deaths of his family must lie at Neanyahu’s doorstep.  He killed them as surely as if he fired the bullets or bombs that ended their lives.

Bibi’s no-fault genocide

Netanyahu ensured there would be no accountability for the massive security failure of 10/7.  When Israelis demanded a commision of inquiry to examine what happened, how it happened, and who was at fault, the army and Netanyahu brushed it off, saying there would be time enough to do so after the fighting ended.  Now, two years later, the attacks continue (despite the ceasefire) and no one has been held accountable.  The army claims it is compiling its own reports, but we’ve seen such inquiries before and they inevitably find (conveniently) that bad things happened, but no one was at fault.

The Israeli narrative since 10/7, accepted almost universally by global media, is that Hamas killed 1,200 Israelis during their initial attack. That it engaged in sexual violence against Israeli female hostages, and tortured and starved those it held inside Gaza since then. The truth is otherwise.

First, the IDF is responsible for many, if not most of the deaths on 10/7.  Second, it failed to prevent the attack. Its defenses were porous, offered no protection and were easily breached by the Palestinian attackers.  Third, interviews with helicopter pilots confirm the army activated the Hannibal Directive, which permits the murder of Israeli hostages in order to pfevent them falling into Hamas’ hands.  Hannibal caused a massive military response that did not distinguish between Palestinians and Israelis.  The pilots confirm intentionally firing on vehicles holding Israeli captives traveling into Gaza.

Brig. Gen. Hiram personally ordered tanks to fire into a home on a kibbutz attacked on 10/7.  The result was the murder of all of the Israeli residents.  Hiram was cleared after an IDF “investigation.”  Separately, the army recently confirmed with the residents of Kfar Aza, that it killed at least three residents on the day of the attack.

Israeli survivors of the Nova massacre confirm that not only were they pinned down in the crossfire between the Palestinian fighters and IDF forces, but that often they were directly fired on by their own soldiers.  They confirm this caused deaths of festivalgoers.  400 people were killed at the festival.  Pictures of hundreds of burnt out cars in parking lots support the claim that Hamas is unlikely to have caused such massive damage, since it was armed with rifles and RPGs. Not weapons which would cause such massive destruction. It’s much more likely this wide-scale damage was caused by Israeli helicopter rockets.

Israel has either not released the results of autopsies of the Israeli victims or not performed them. Doing so would confirm who killed them.  It clearly does not want to clarify how they died.  This leads to the possibility that many, if not most of the deaths came as a result of Israeli fire.

Israel is a nation committing genocide. In order to shield itself and its guilty conscience from accountability, it needs the narrative of victimhood. It was the victim on 10/7.  Hamas was the perpetrator.  Hamas was the aggressor. It killed babies and raped women. It killed in cold blood. It hates us because we are Jews.  We, on the other hand, were innocent.

This is the same narrative peddled by Hitler. Germans, he claimed, were victims of the shameful armistice agreement ending WWI, which stripped the country of its industrial heartland and prohibited it from rebuilding its army.  He nursed German resentment.  Further, he aroused hatred against global forces which allegedly undermined the German people and its rightful place.  One of his main targets was Jews, who he blamed for stealing Germany’s wealth and impoverishing its people, mired in the Great Depression and hyperinflation.

By instilling such hatred of Jews, Hitler was able to later carry out their extermination. Those who are enemies of the German people could be eliminated due to the threat they pose.  This is precisely the same rhetoric heard throughout Israel justifying the genocide in Gaza.