Hamas says it has returned another body it believes is Shiri Bibas

Hamas on Friday said it had turned over to the Red Cross the body of a woman that Hamas officials believe is Shiri Bibas, the Israeli mother whose capture with her two young sons during the Oct. 7, 2023, attack became a symbol of the country's anguish.

Bibas' remains were initially believed to have to been repatriated to Israel on Thursday, with those of her two children, as part of a negotiated exchange for Palestinian prisoners. With a DNA test, Israeli officials then determined the body was that of another person.

"Tonight, at the request of the parties, an ICRC team received human remains, which were then transferred to Israeli authorities," The International Committee of the Red Cross said Friday, adding, "The ICRC cannot confirm any additional details."

The Israeli military said that news reports of the repatriation were under review.

Mousa Abu Marzouk, head of Hamas' foreign relations office, said in a text message that the body returned Friday was believed to be that of Bibas. Another Hamas official, who requested anonymity to discuss a sensitive arrangement, confirmed the handoff and similarly said it was Hamas' understanding that they had turned over the right body this time.

A third Hamas official, Mahmoud Mardawi, told the television network Al Araby TV that Hamas had turned over remains of Bibas.

It was not immediately clear that Hamas had handed over the correct body Friday.

Friday's statements, less than 24 hours after Hamas provided Israel with the wrong remains, were the latest development in a series of crises that have made up the first phase of a ceasefire with Hamas. So far, 19 living Israeli hostages have been traded for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.

Despite recriminations from both sides, the ceasefire has held for a month. And Hamas' rapid effort to find and return the body of Bibas was a sign that it did not want to bear responsibility for endangering the agreement before the next transfer, planned for Saturday.

On Thursday, Hamas said it had handed over the remains of four hostages: Bibas, who at the time of her capture was 32; her two children, Ariel, then 4, and Kfir Bibas, then 9 months; and Oded Lifshitz, 83. The handoff was staged in front of crowds in Khan Younis, and each casket bore a photo of a hostage.

Israeli officials brought the remains to a forensic institute in Tel Aviv, Israel, where the identities of Ariel, Kfir and Lifshitz were confirmed.

But early Friday, Israel said one of the bodies Hamas handed over was not that of Bibas. The Israeli military called the finding a "violation of the utmost severity" of the ceasefire. In a statement, Hamas acknowledged the possibility of a mistake or a "mixing up of corpses."

The first phase of the ceasefire deal is set to expire in less than two weeks, and Israel and Hamas have yet to agree on terms to extend the agreement into the next phase.