Leaders in Israel, the United States and worldwide expressed their sadness and horror as the bodies of four dead hostages returned to Israel from Gaza on Thursday.
Many of the messages focused on Shiri Bibas and her children Ariel and Kfir, ages 4 and 9 months at the time of their abduction, who were the youngest hostages taken in Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack and whose bodies were said to be returned on Thursday. Leaders also mourned Oded Lifshitz, 84, whose body was also returned.
In Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stressed the need to defeat Hamas, while President Isaac Herzog emphasized the need to free the remaining captives. Yair Lapid, the leader of Israel’s parliamentary opposition, posted a briefer message on social media.
Benjamin Netanyahu: “Today, every home in Israel bows its head. We bow our heads over the heavy loss of four of our hostages. We all feel pain mixed with rage. We are all outraged at the Hamas monsters. The four coffins of our dear ones require us, more than ever, to ensure, to swear, that what happened on October 7 never recurs.
“The voice of our dear ones’ blood cries out to us from the ground. It requires us to settle accounts with the depraved murderers — and we will settle accounts with them.”
Quoting a verse from Psalms, he continued, “God of vengeance, Lord God of vengeance, appear.” He added, “We will return all of our hostages. We will destroy the murderers; we will eliminate Hamas. And together, with God’s help, we will ensure our future.”
Isaac Herzog: On social media, Israel’s president wrote, “Our hearts — the hearts of an entire nation — lie in tatters. On behalf of the State of Israel, I bow my head and ask for forgiveness. Forgiveness for not protecting you on that terrible day. Forgiveness for not bringing you home safely.”
Later, speaking to CNN, Herzog said Israel should prioritize freeing the rest of the hostages and extending the current ceasefire. “First and foremost, we want to bring all our hostages back home. There are 69 of them out and it is assumed that the majority are still alive. I’m speaking to their families throughout these days. We have to get to the second stage of the deal and complete it and bring them back home whilst making sure that Hamas cannot reign in Gaza,” he said.
Yair Lapid: In a post above a photo of the four coffins draped in Israeli flags, he wrote, “The heart cannot contain the pain.”
In the United States, leaders condemned Hamas and expressed solidarity with Israel.
House Speaker Mike Johnson: “It is beyond comprehension that anyone could take the lives of these innocent people—a peace activist, and a young mother and her babies. This is pure evil. America stands with Israel in its fight to eliminate Hamas,” the Louisiana Republican tweeted above photos of the four victims.
Rep. Elise Stefanik: “The heinous display of Hamas terrorists parading the coffins of murdered Israeli civilians and babies Shiri Bibas, Ariel Bibas, Kfir Bibas, and Oded Lifshitz to the cheers of a barbaric pro-Hamas mob is an affront to all of humanity. We mourn the loss of these precious innocent lives and condemn the truly evil actions of these vicious and depraved Hamas terrorists,” tweeted Stefanik, a New York Republican who is awaiting confirmation as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
Rep. Steny Hoyer: “Hamas is depraved – there is no rationalization for their violence, and these murders deserve universal condemnation,” the Maryland Democrat, a former House majority leader, said in a statement. “We must continue our work to secure not only the remaining hostages but also Israel’s long-term security. We must never allow October 7 to be repeated or Hamas’ brutal leadership over Gaza to be restored. May the memories of Shiri Bibas, Ariel Bibas, Kfir Bibas, and Oded Lifshitz be a blessing.”
Sen. John Fetterman: “Hamas abducted, tortured and murdered children. Used their remains to free prisoners. This spectacle advances the frontier of utter depravity and reaffirms standing firmly on the side of Israel,” tweeted the Pennsylvania Democrat, an outspoken supporter of Israel.
Messages of mourning and support also came from leaders around the world. An Argentine official announced on Wednesday that the country would declare a day of mourning for Shiri, Kfir and Ariel Bibas, who were Argentine-Israeli citizens.
United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights: “The parading of bodies in the manner seen this morning is abhorrent and cruel, and flies in the face of international law,” the office said, according to the Times of Israel. “We urge that all returns are conducted in privacy, and with respect and care.”
French President Emmanuel Macron: “Shiri. Kfir. Ariel. Faces of innocence and love. Faces of an eternal humanity that the barbarity of Hamas will never abolish. France, mobilized for the release of all hostages, stands alongside Yarden and the Bibas family. In universal brotherhood,” he tweeted.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz: “It has become a terrible certainty: Shiri Silbermann-Bibas and her sons Ariel and Kfir are dead. Hamas has brought suffering and death to countless families. I feel for everyone who has to deal with this terrible certainty,” he tweeted.
Argentine lawmaker Sabrina Ajmechet: “I hope that never again, after this, will I have to hear that what happens in Israel and Gaza is not our business, not the business of all Argentines,” Ajmechet, who also leads the country’s Human Rights Commission, wrote in one of many posts about the Bibas family. “The president [Javier Milei] will declare a day of national mourning for them. Thank you, President, for your commitment to democracy, to freedom, to Western values and to the fight against terrorism. A warm hug to the Bibas family. Today all Argentines are you.”
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