Baby hostage Kfir Bibas has reportedly been killed along with his mum and brother in Gaza, claims Hamas, with Israel now investigating.
The militia’s military wing - the Al-Qassam Brigades - have said that the 10-month-old child died during fighting with Israeli forces, as did his sibling Ariel, four, and his mother Shiri, 32. Hamas has said that they were all killed before the current ceasefire.
Kfir has spent nearly a fifth of his life in Hamas captivity after being abducted from his home in a southern Israeli kibbutz on October 7, when Palestinian militants snatched about 240 people and dragged them to Gaza. He is the youngest captive, was among about 30 children who were taken hostage in Hamas' assault.
An Israeli official said they are investigating the claims that he is dead and that they have notified the Bibas family, while describing Hamas as “cruel and inhuman”.
IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari said: "The terrorist organization Hamas continues to act in a cruel and inhuman manner. IDF representatives spoke with the members of the Bibas family, informed them of the publication and are accompanying them at this time. The IDF is examining the reliability of the information. The responsibility for the safety of all the abductees and abductees in the Gaza Strip lies fully with the terrorist organization Hamas."
Under a current temporary cease-fire, Hamas has released women, children and teens, but Kfir hasn't been included on the lists of those set to be freed and now the militia group is saying, without providing evidence, that he is dead.
With his red hair and toothless smile, Kfir's ordeal has become for many a symbol of the brutality of Hamas' attack. With most other young hostages already released, Kfir's fate and that of his four-year-old brother have been a rallying cry for Israelis seeking the speedy release of all the hostages.
A demonstration in support of the Bibas family was held in Tel Aviv on Tuesday. "There is no precedent for something like this, for a baby who was kidnapped when he was 9 months old," said Eylon Keshet, Kfir's father's cousin. "Is baby Kfir the enemy of Hamas?" Kfir's family, like other relatives of captives, have been tormented since October 7 with no sign of what has happened to him.