WASHINGTON (TNND) — The bodies of four Israeli hostages taken by Hamas were released Thursday bringing the number of captives freed since the ceasefire began to 28. Hamas and Israel confirmed Tuesday that the bodies of Shiri Bibas and her two sons, Ariel, 4 and Kfir, 9 months old, would be included in the release.

For more than 500 days, the Bibas family has been a symbol of hope and resilience in the face of the horrors of the Israel-Hamas War. At the time of their kidnapping by Hamas terrorists on October 7, Kfir was nearly nine months old, his brother Ariel was four, and their mother Shiri was 32.