Ariel, Kfir, and Shiri Bibas, kidnapped to Gaza from their home in Nir Oz and murdered days or weeks after they were taken hostage, will be laid to rest Wednesday. Though Hamas claimed that Israel killed Shiri and her sons in an airstrike, forensic evidence, obtained after their bodies were returned to Israel last week, shows that Kfir and Ariel were killed by the terrorists with their bare hands no later than November 2023. Their mother was killed around the same time; her body as well showed no signs of having been killed in an explosion. The procession left the funeral home in Rishon Lezion and will travel past the Rishonim Interchange, the Yavne Interchange brigde, the Ad Halom bridge, Nitzanim Junction, Silver Junction, Yad Mordechai Junction, Nir Am Junction, and Sha'ar Hanegev Junction. The public may stand at the side of the road to pay last respects. The Families Forum stated, "The Bibas family and the Forum call on the entire nation of Israel to stand with Israeli flags at the roadsides and accompany them on their last journey to eternal rest." The funeral itself took place at the Nir Oz cemetery, attended by a limited number of people; it was broadcast live from 11:30 a.m. ירדן ביבס סופד לשירי ושני ילדיו צילום: דוברות הכנסת Speaking at the funeral, Yarden Bibas, Shiri's husband and father of Ariel and Kfir, said, "I remember the first time I said 'mi amor' to you. It was at the very beginning of our relationship. You told me to only call you that if I was certain I loved you, not to say it carelessly. I didn't say it then because I didn't want you to think I was rushing to say, 'I love you.' Shiri, I'll confess to you now that I already loved you back then when I said 'mi amor.'" "Shiri, I love you and will always love you! Shiri, you are everything to me! You are the best wife and mother there could be. Shiri, you are my best friend. Mishmish, who will help me make decisions now? How am I supposed to make decisions without you? "Do you remember our last decision together? In the safe room, I asked if we should 'fight or surrender.' You said fight, so I fought. Shiri, I'm sorry I couldn't protect you all. If only I had known what would happen, I wouldn't have fired. "I think about everything we went through together — there are so many beautiful memories. I remember Ariel and Kfir's births. I remember the days we would sit at home or in a café, just the two of us, talking for hours about everything under the sun. It was wonderful. I miss those times deeply. "Your presence is profoundly missed. I want to tell you about everything that's happening in the world and here in Israel. Shiri, everyone knows and loves us — you can't imagine how surreal all this madness is. Shiri, people tell me they'll always be by my side, but they're not you. So please stay close to me and don't go far! Shiri, this is the closest I've been to you since October 7th, and I can't kiss or hug you, and it's breaking me! "Shiri, please watch over me... Protect me from bad decisions. Shield me from harmful things and protect me from myself. Guard me so I don't sink into darkness. Mishmish, I love you! "Chuki, Ariel, You made me a father. You transformed us into a family. You taught me what truly matters in life and about responsibility. The day you were born, I matured instantly because of you. You taught me so much about myself, and I want to thank you. So thank you, my beloved. "Ariel, I hope you're not angry with me for failing to protect you properly and for not being there for you. I hope you know I thought about you every day, every minute. I hope you're enjoying paradise. I'm sure you're making all the angels laugh with your silly jokes and impressions. I hope there are plenty of butterflies for you to watch, just like you did during our picnics. Chuki, be careful when you climb down from your cloud not to step on Toni... "Teach Kfir all your impressions and make everyone laugh up there. Ariel, I love you 'the most in the world, always in the world,' just as you used to tell us. "Poopik, Kfir, I didn't think our family could be more perfect, and then you came and made it even more perfect... I remember your birth. I remember during the delivery when the midwife suddenly stopped everything — we were frightened and thought something was wrong — but it was just to tell us we had another redhead. Mom and I laughed and rejoiced. "You brought more light and happiness to our little home. You came with your sweet, captivating laugh and smile, and I was instantly hooked! It was impossible not to nibble on you all the time. "Kfir, I'm sorry I didn't protect you better, but I need you to know that I love you deeply and miss you terribly! I miss nibbling on you and hearing your laughter. I miss our morning games when mom would ask me to watch you before I went to work. I cherished those little moments so much, and I miss them now more than ever! Kfir, I love you the most in the world, always in the world! I have so many more things to tell you all, but I'll save them for when we're alone." Dana Silberman Sitton, Shiri's sister and aunt to Kfir and Ariel, mourned, "Baz, Lulu, and Purpur. For a whole year I've been preparing myself for this moment, but nothing could truly prepare me adequately for saying goodbye to you. Baz has been Shiri's nickname since we were children. I've already shared how much we looked forward to becoming aunts. Shiri and I decided that when we had children, they couldn't call us by our first names — only 'aunt!' And so it was." "Lia, Alon, and Erez were blessed with an aunt like no other, caring, loving, and protective. Shiri and I grew up in a home filled with love, compassion, and understanding. Dad and Mom raised us to be strong women, to love others and respect differences. When we were children, I was the annoying sister; Shiri was always the innocent and sweet one. Shiri wanted to clean the table — I would lie on it. Shiri wanted to watch television — I would suddenly feel compelled to dance in front of it. "I admit I tormented her a bit and always waited for her reaction. 'Why don't you get back at me?' I would ask. And Shiri would say, 'Wait until I'm older, then I'll get you back.' A few years ago, I reminded her that I was still waiting... When our children came along, I told her about their antics and she said, 'See? Now they're getting you back for everything you did to me.' "When Shiri and I would pick up the children from kindergarten, we would go straight to Mom and Dad's house. We'd open the door, and they would immediately rush to hug and kiss their grandchildren and whisk them away. Shiri and I would look at each other and say, 'Well, it seems we're unnecessary here.' That's how deeply they loved their grandchildren — with such special love. Now Baz, you're here beside them, with them, so I'm not worried. "My Lulu, a little redhead with a mischievous laugh, playful yet gentle, small but wise. I was privileged to be your aunt for only four years, But they were four years of being a proud aunt! I'll miss you so deeply, I'll miss our shared dinners with Lia, Alon, and Erez at Grandpa and Grandma's house, eating pizza from Grandpa's special recipe. I'll miss your walk, like a little man, your laughter, your kind eyes, and your sweet hugs. "Purpur, sadly, I only had 9 months to cherish you. It wasn't difficult to fall in love with you immediately, smiling and pure, and a redhead too — you didn't disappoint. You were both my beloved, special, and one-of-a-kind nephews! You'll be in our hearts for eternity and forever present in our lives. "I want to ask your forgiveness on behalf of our leadership and military who weren't there for you that day, and who took so long to bring you back to your homeland. Please watch over us from above — five angels who are uniquely mine. Baz, hug Dad and Mom tightly for me and watch over them for me. Please send energies here to drive all evil from the world and leave only goodness. "I promise you, as I promised Mom and Dad, that the monsters beyond the fence will not succeed in their mission. They will not defeat us, they will not break us. On the contrary, their mission failed because we united, because we grew stronger, because we became invincible. They lost. I hope you're up there embraced by Mom and Dad, playing and running through green fields of happiness and love. I promise you, Baz, and you, Lulu and Purpur, that no one will forget you. Lia, Alon, and Erez will grow up to be proud of you. You will be forever bound in our hearts and souls. I'm certain we'll meet again..." Related articles: Hamas: Ceasefire talks gaining momentum Hamas in talks to release hostages for Eid al-Fitr ceasefire Released hostage to be honored by USA US presented Hamas with new proposal for hostage release Ofri Bibas Levy, Yarden's sister and aunt to Ariel and Kfir, said, "I've been writing these words in my mind for over a year. The uncertainty, anxiety, and concern for you gave my thoughts no rest, but each time my mind began to formulate them, I forcefully pushed the words away — with the power of my love for you and Yarden, with the strength of hope that you would return. And now I stand here before you. This is not how I hoped to meet you again. How does one begin to say goodbye?" "For sixteen months, I've been speaking about you everywhere. It always hurt and intensified the longing, but talking about you also kept you present, alive. How can it be that you are no longer here? "Shiri, how can it be that we won't schedule another Saturday picnic? That we won't melt with joy seeing Ariel run to Toam for hugs and kisses? That we won't make fun of Yarden and worry about him together? That you won't pass on advice and hand-me-downs from Kfir to Afik, whom you never got to meet? How did they take a whole year of shared experiences and memories from us? How can we imagine a future without you? How did they take you from us? Sixteen months since that terrible Saturday, and nothing makes sense yet — nothing feels real, and everything still lacks logic. "Shiri, you were the perfect partner for Yarden. I couldn't have asked for anyone better for him. Loving, sensitive, caring, nurturing, calming. The strength you instilled in him all these years, we now draw through him. Don't worry about him. He is strong and amazing and still makes us laugh. And we will take care of him. I promise. "Luli, how I miss you. To your shyness, your mischievousness, your sweetness, your smile. Seeing you with your Toto. How much she misses you. How much we imagined you growing up together, far into a post-army trip to South America. "Kfir, there will never be consolation for not having more time with you. We didn't get to do anything together. I didn't even get to buy you a gift for your first birthday. "I will always remember you; you will never be forgotten. You are in my head and heart every time I look at Toam, Negev, and Afik. Every time I see a Batman costume or hear a baby laugh. And that's how I want to remember the three of you — happy, laughing, a family. "Many people ask for your forgiveness, and Yarden's, and ours. But the blame is not on them. This disaster should not have happened. You should not have been taken, and you should have returned alive. Forgiveness means accepting responsibility and committing to act differently, to learn from mistakes. There is no meaning to forgiveness before the failures are investigated, and all officials take responsibility. Our disaster as a nation and as a family should not have happened, and must never happen again. They could have saved you but preferred revenge. We lost. Our image of triumph will never happen. Our struggle against the enemies will be eternal, but we must always sanctify life, love of fellow humans, respect for the dead, and never leave anyone behind. Otherwise, we lose who we are. "Luli and Firfir, the world came to know you in the most tragic way, but I promise we will do everything so that your memory will be one of innocence, love, and goodness. Exactly as mom Shiri and dad Yarden raised you. I promise to do good in your name. Love and miss you forever." מלווים את משפחת ביבס במחלף יבנה צילום: עופרי איתן On Tuesday evening , ahead of the funeral, the Knesset was illuminated in orange light, and throughout the day a similar gesture will take place. Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana will open the Knesset plenum at 11:00 a.m. with a moment of silence in memory of Kfir, Ariel, Shiri, and Oded Lifshitz , whose remains were also returned to Israel last week, and in memory of all of those who were murdered and fell in the October 7 massacre and the ensuing war. Earlier, both the coalition and opposition asked Ohana to open the discussions with a moment of silence parallel to the funeral.
