The Bibas Family’s Slaughter and Israel’s Torment

In the aftermath of the October 7 massacre, the Bibas family quickly came to symbolize the inhuman barbarity of which Hamas was capable.

Within hours of the attack, Hamas footage spread on the internet featuring Shiri Bibas in captivity cradling her two sons, Ariel and Kfir, who were four years old and only ten months old, respectively, at the time of the attack. The look of existential horror on their faces galvanized Israeli society ahead of what would prove to be the longest war in the country’s history. When the Bibas family patriarch, Yarden, was released in early February, he recalled how his Hamas captors would beat him while tormenting him with tales of how his wife and children died in an Israeli air strike.

About the Author

Noah Rothman

Noah Rothman is a senior writer at National Review. His third book, Blood and Progress: A Century of Left-Wing Violence, was published by Hachette in May 2026.

Featured Tags

In the aftermath of the October 7 massacre, the Bibas family quickly came to symbolize the inhuman barbarity of which Hamas was capable.

Within hours of the attack, Hamas footage spread on the internet featuring Shiri Bibas in captivity cradling her two sons, Ariel and Kfir, who were four years old and only ten months old, respectively, at the time of the attack. The look of existential horror on their faces galvanized Israeli society ahead of what would prove to be the longest war in the country’s history. When the Bibas family patriarch, Yarden, was released in early February, he recalled how his Hamas captors would beat him while tormenting him with tales of how his wife and children died in an Israeli air strike.

About the Author

Noah Rothman

Noah Rothman is a senior writer at National Review. His third book, Blood and Progress: A Century of Left-Wing Violence, was published by Hachette in May 2026.