Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday (Feb 20) slammed the Palestinian militant group Hamas as a "death cult" after it displayed coffins containing the bodies of four Israeli hostages. 

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The hostages included a baby and a small child. 

“Hamas is not a resistance movement. Hamas is a death cult that murders, tortures, and parades dead bodies,” government spokesman David Mencer told journalists.

Also read: ‘We hoped, prayed for a different ending’: Families crushed as Hamas releases Israeli hostages’ bodies

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Netanyahu vows vengeance 

Israeli PM Netanyahu, in a message of victory over Hamas, said, “We are all united in unbearable grief.” 

“We all ache with pain that is mixed with rage. We are all furious at the monsters of Hamas,” he said, adding that Israel must “settle the score with the vile murderers—and we will settle the score.”

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The Israeli PM promised to achieve the longstanding goals of the war. 

Also read: ‘Day of grief’, says Netanyahu as Hamas prepares to return baby Kfir Bibas’s body

“We will bring back all our hostages, destroy the murderers, eliminate Hamas, and together—with God’s help—we will secure our future,” he added. 

'Hamas will be destroyed' 

Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz vowed to destroy the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

“The heart of the entire nation is mourning today,” Katz posted on X.

Also read: Hamas to free 'all Israeli hostages' in single swap during phase two of Gaza truce

“Hamas abducted, Hamas murdered, Hamas will be destroyed,” he stressed, adding that Israel will take revenge against their enemies and secure its future.

Hamas on Thursday (Feb 20) revealed black coffins in southern Gaza, displaying the names and photos of Shiri Bibas and her two young sons, Ariel and Kfir, pinned to the casket.

According to Hamas, the bodies handed over include those of Oded Lifshitz, 83, along with 32-year-old Shiri Bibas and her two children, who were just nine months and four years old when they were taken hostage.

Also read: 'Our hearts lie in tatters': Israel mourns after receiving bodies of dead Gaza hostages

(With inputs from agencies)