Bibas's Family Asks PM Natanyahu To Be Silent Because He Reveals The Murder Of Shiri And His Two Hearts

Ofri Bibas Levy. (Source: Paulina Patimer/Pro-Democracy Protest Movement)

JAKARTA - The family of the Israeli hostages who died criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and asked him to remain silent, after repeatedly revealing the murder of their family members.

Ofri Bibas, the sister of the released hostages, Yarden Bibas, denounced the repeated depiction of the murder of Yarden's wife, Shiri and two of Ariel and Kfir's children, who went against the wishes of the family, quoted from The Times of Israel on February 26.

Ofri also criticized Israeli news media, social media users and public diplomats for what he said was a blatant violation of the family's wishes.

The issuance of this information at repeated requests from the family is "an insult after a family who has gone through 16 months of hell and is still facing the worst in the future," wrote Ofri Bibas on Facebook, the day before the funeral of his nephew and brother-in-law.

Ofri said authorities had not yet completed their report on the killings, let alone hand it over to the family, which, surprisingly, still knew the details of "media, public diplomacy apparatus, Twitter users and yes, for whatever reason, even prime minister."

"If I can say one thing to everyone on behalf of the Bibas family: Just shut up," wrote Ofri Bibas.

"There are many ways to carry out public diplomacy (which, by the way, has never been done here since October 7) sensitively, respectfully and coordinating with the family," he said, adding there was no point in responding to it because "we were preparing for tomorrow and trying to think about how we could bury Shiri, Ariel, and Kfir."

It said the funeral would be held in a closed ceremony at Zohar, near Nir Oz, after the public procession. The family has urged the public to join the procession and said they will broadcast their condolences speech live.

Ofri previously accused PM Netanyahu of failing to apologize for the fate of his family, saying on behalf of his brother, "the pardon must come first and especially with the return of all hostages."

Earlier, PM Netanyahu described the murder of the children in detail in a speech to the Israeli Public Action Committee on Tuesday, and, while holding photos of the victims, at a military ceremony on Sunday.

After Sunday's speech, the Bibas family sent a letter of termination and termination warrant to PM Netanyahu's office and other government offices asking them to stop publishing details of the killings of Shiri, Ariel, and Kfir Bibas, Ynet reported.

The family also issued a statement via the Hostages and Missing Families Forum on Saturday, asking the media to "stop adding details about the fact that Shiri and the children were killed by their kidnappers."

Yarden, Shiri, Ariel and Kfir Bibas were kidnapped from their home in Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023, when Palestinian militant groups led by Hamas stormed southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and holding 251 others hostage.

Last Thursday, Hamas released the bodies of Oded Lifshitz, Ariel, and Kfir Bibas, and an unknown Gaza woman placed in a coffin with a photo of Shiri Bibas.

After Israel protested, Hamas on Saturday returned the body of Shiri Bibas. Previously, Yarden Bibas himself had been released alive on February 1.