The remains of the elderly Oded Lifschitz and Yarden Bibas and her two children, Airel Bibas and Kfir Bibas, who were 4 years old and 8 months old at the time of their abduction, were handed over in black coffins. The two children were the youngest taken hostage by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023. The ceremony marked the first time Hamas handed over the remains of hostages since the January ceasefire.

The four hostages were taken alive but died sometime while in Hamas captivity. Yarden Bibas was also taken captive but survived. He was released two weeks ago.

Hamas has used the handover of the hostages as a propaganda opportunity, parading hostages before their release. In the Thursday ceremony, attended by hundreds of locals, Hamas, and allied fighters carried the black coffins before a massive banner showing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a vampire with blood dripping down his face. Images of the hostages were superimposed on his chest, surrounded by blood.

“The War Criminal Netanyahu & His Nazi Army Killed Them with Missiles from Zionist Warplanes,” text in Hebrew and English on the banner read.

A rocket or bomb was displayed in front of the coffins, with a sticker in English reading, “They were killed by USA bombs.”

The coffins were handed over to the Red Cross, which covered them in white sheets and drove them to Israel in a convoy.

Israelis and the United Nations roundly condemned the display.

“Under international law, any handover of the remains of deceased must comply with the prohibition of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, ensuring respect for the dignity of the deceased and their families,” U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said in a statement.

Unlike previous hostage releases, the display on Thursday wasn’t live streamed on Israeli screens in the so-called “hostage square” in Tel Aviv like previous occasions.

“Israel has received, via the Red Cross, the coffins of four fallen hostages,” Netanyahu said, adding that their remains are being examined. “The families of the hostages have been informed, and our hearts are with them in this difficult time.”

“There are no words. Our hearts — the hearts of an entire nation — lie in tatters,” Israeli President Isaac Herzog said in a statement on X.

“On behalf of the State of Israel, I bow my head and ask for forgiveness. Forgiveness for not protecting you on that terrible day. Forgiveness for not bringing you home safely,” he added.

The Red Cross convoy carrying the bodies was greeted by hundreds of Israeli mourners.

Despite previous hints that it would collapse, the six-week ceasefire has held so far.

The ceasefire deal calls for a pause in fighting for six weeks and the opening of negotiations to end the war altogether. Over those six weeks, 33 hostages are to be exchanged for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. Displaced Palestinians will be able to return to what’s left of their homes, and humanitarian aid will flow freely. So far, 24 living hostages and four deceased have been released to Israel.

Israel estimated that 30 of nearly 100 remaining hostages are dead, but U.S. and Israeli officials privately believe the true number to be much higher, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The war is the deadliest in Israel’s history. While casualty counts are controversial, the Gaza Health Ministry, overseen by Hamas, reports that 46,000 Palestinians have been killed since Oct. 7, most of them women and children, though its figures don’t distinguish between civilians and fighters. It says another 110,000 have been wounded, while nearly the entire population has been displaced.

Over 400 Israel Defense Force soldiers have been killed in operations in Gaza. Roughly 1,200 Israelis were killed in Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, surprise attack that ignited the war.