HAMAS' youngest hostage, 10-month-old baby Kfir Bibas, was meant to be released alongside his mum and brother before terrorists "decided not to do this", the IDF has said.
Hamas made an unverified claim that the three were killed in an airstrike and offered to return three corpses to Israel this week in the sixth round of hostage releases, but did not identify the remains.
Israeli officials said the terror group violated the ceasefire agreement when it failed to release Shiri Bibas, 32, and her young children Ariel, aged four, and baby Kfir from Gaza.
“We demanded today, like every day during the framework, to return the women and children as agreed upon in the deal, which Egypt and Qatar had a commitment to. Hamas decided to violate the framework,” IDF spokesperson RAdm Daniel Hagari said.
“In the framework, the Bibas family, the mother and the kids, were supposed to be returned to Israel. Hamas decided not to do this.”
Hamas reportedly failed to provide a list of hostages by 7am Friday, and launched rockets toward Israeli territory early in the morning, The Times of Israel writes.
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The terror group also claimed responsibility for a deadly terror attack at a packed bus station in Jerusalem on Thursday.
The Bibas family have become a symbol of Hamas's cruelty and Israeli suffering in the wake of their October 7 massacres that saw 1,200 slaughtered and some 240 hostages dragged into Gaza.
None have been heard from since until Hamas made its bombshell claims – a psychological warfare tactic previously executed by Gaza terror groups, The Times of Israel reports.
On Wednesday, the IDF said it had notified the family that it was investigating the “cruel and inhumane” claim that the three were dead and slammed Hamas’s “psychological terrorism.”
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Kfir, Ariel, Shiri, and father Yarden, 34, were all snatched by Hamas monsters from Kibbutz Nir Oz during their bloody attack on southern Israel.
A video of Shiri's despairing face as she clung to her two red-haired boys as they were dragged screaming from their home is one of the most haunting scenes from October 7.
Horrified onlookers screamed "she has a baby" as she was bundled away by Hamas.
The family was hiding in a safe room in their home on the border with Gaza when the terrorists attacked.
Yarden texted relatives "I love you all" as they sheltered – before telling family members "they are coming in".
Another clip showed the dad suffering from a head injury after being repeatedly hit with a hammer by Hamas butchers.
Yarden's status remains unknown – and his death was not claimed yesterday by Hamas.
Still holding onto hope the three are still alive, relatives said they were waiting for the allegations to be "refuted military officials".
Shiri's cousin Yifat Zailer said the wait for answers has been "brutal", adding that she was in total disbelief that a baby could be used in their "psychological games".
"We reach a dead end every time we try to figure out why Hamas is having so much trouble getting them back or whether that means if they're alive or not."
Yifat continued: "It's amazing that a baby became…a winning card or a trophy holding him hostage like this to get more arms or, I don't know, fuel for their missile launchers."
"I can't stop thinking about Kfir," she said, "You know, if we wait another day, maybe we will lose him."
The Bibas family have now released a statement saying: "Our family has learned of Hamas' latest claims.
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"We are waiting for the information to be confirmed and hopefully refuted by military officials."
The terrorist group has been accused of using civilians and hostages as human shields as they hide out in Gaza.
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