One of the central symbols of Hamas terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, in which more than 1,200 Israelis were killed, More than 10,000 were injured and more than 240 were kidnapped, they are little Kfir and Ariel Bibas with their mother Shiri.
Ariel, 4 years old, and Kfir, 11 months old, were kidnapped by Hamas along with other minors. The image of his mother, Shiri Bibas, with an expression of horror and despair on her face, with both children in her arms covered with a blanket, surrounded by armed terrorists, has been etched in the retinas of Israelis.
The video has been widely circulated throughout the world. It was filmed by the terrorists themselves who kidnapped the family from their home in Kibbutz Nir Oz.
Shiri's husband and father of the children, Yarden, was kidnapped separately and was seen in another video released by Hamas in which he was taken away on a motorcycle, hitting his head.
“Hamas turned Shiri and the children into a symbol from the beginning,” says Jimmy Miller, Shiri's first cousin, in an interview with EL TIEMPO. “I have not seen any other case of so much filming of the moment of the family's kidnapping. I imagine they wanted to clearly show who they had in their hands and thus exert pressure,” he adds.
(Read also: Family forum confirms the death of another Israeli hostage in the hands of Hamas in Gaza)
Kfir Bibas, the smallest Israeli kidnapped by Hamas on 7/10, just turned 11 months old. His family asks for the immediate return of him, his 4-year-old brother Ariel, his parents Shiri and Yarden and all the kidnapped people. pic.twitter.com/BF4RY2RTeU
— Jana Beris (@JanaBeris1) December 19, 2023
The tragedy of the Bibas is that of their Nir Oz kibbutz, a community of approximately 415 people and of which one in four members was murdered or kidnapped. In reality, the proportion is even higher: 46 members of the kibbutz were killed – including 4 in captivity and their bodies are still in the hands of Hamas -, and 71 were kidnapped. Of the latter, 40 have been released during the ceasefire.
For the Bibas family, the tragedy is multiple. While still waiting with great anguish and fear for news about the return of Shiri, Yarden and her two small children, What is irreversible is the murder of Shiri's own parents, Margit and Yosi Silberman, that they were initially kidnapped and then it was reported that they had been found dead on the ground.
(You can read: Hamas rejects exchange of hostages for prisoners without a permanent ceasefire in Gaza)
Yosi Silberman came to Israel from Argentina in the 70s. Margit Shnaider did it from Peru. They met in Israel, fell in love and made their home first in northern Israel and then They moved a long time ago to Kibbutz Kramim – where Shiri and her sister Dana were born – and from there to Kibbutz Nir Oz.
“Yosi had retired some time ago and was happy with the new stage, feeling that he could do things that he couldn't do before and especially he was satisfied with having started playing sports,” says Jimmy. “But everything was cut short.”
Jimmy remembers that Yosi always supported peace and believed in coexistence with Palestinian neighbors. “He even had a sticker on his door that said 'Peace Now' but that didn't help him. The terrorists didn't care at all,” she says with a mixture of sadness and anger.
Before marrying, Yarden lived on Kibbutz Tzehelim, also located in southern Israel. When he and Shiri made their home, they moved to Nir Oz. Ariel and Kfir, the best-known children in Israel today, were born there, in a tragic situation that no one dares to say today how it could end.
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“I want the children to grow up together, happy as before,” said Yifat Zailer, another cousin of Shiri, with her baby in her arms, in tears, in a broadcast to Israeli television from the so-called “Kidnapped Square.” the place that has been the scene of all the protests and demonstrations for the release of the hostages for weeks. “You can't live with this anguish. “They have to come back.”
For his part, Jimmy Miller claims to be aware of the fact that “The pressure from the families on the government to reach an agreement with Hamas increases the price that the terrorists set”. And he adds: “But here there are people kidnapped in inhuman conditions, almost without food, almost without water, there were those who returned and said that for 50 days they could not bathe… Every day is a danger.”
Added to the anguish of the kidnapping itself, of the uncertainty, is the fact that Ariel, 4 years old, has a skin disease. which requires a specific cream without which you can bleed and be in danger. AND Kfir, who is only a few months old, cannot eat pita bread with cheese, which – according to the returned kidnapped people – they receive very little food.
This is part of a harsh accusation from Israel to the International Red Cross, which the relatives of those kidnapped maintain has done nothing to help in their release.
(Keep reading: The 3 hostages killed by the Israeli Army were shirtless and carrying a white flag)
Professor Hagai Levine, who heads the volunteer medical team at the Forum of Relatives of the Kidnapped, condemned that the Red Cross has not even agreed to receive the remedies they wanted to give them for their captive loved ones, without which they may die.
This issue exasperates Eilon Keshet, cousin of Yarden Bibas, who in a virtual press conference – in which EL TIEMPO participated – exclaimed with a broken voice: “It is inconceivable that Unicef does not fulfill its duty to look after these children.”
Holding banners with photos of her loved ones in her hands, Eilon asks the press participating in the event for help, to spread the drama, to tell about these children “who are suffering so much and we don't know how they will come back.” “This is not a political issue, it is humanitarian,” she says, almost crying.
Between the ceasefire and the fatal news
When Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire that began on Friday, November 24, It was determined that in seven batches the minors and their mothers, as well as elderly women, would be released.
So, The Israeli people were sure that Shiri Bibas and her two young children, Ariel and Kfir, would soon return home. But, as the days passed and they were not included in the different liberation days, concern increased.
(Continue reading: The international news of the year: The war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza)
At one point, Hamas said that “they cannot find them,” that they are not in their hands and they do not know who has them.
It is known that there are kidnapped people in the hands of the Islamic Jihad and also other smaller groups, and that even Palestinian civilians kidnapped Israelis.
But, Israel has no doubt that everything is controlled by Hamas and the fact is that in some of the batches in which civilians left Gaza, those who accompanied the van with the liberated people who were handed over to the International Red Cross were armed terrorists from both Hamas and Hamas. as well as Islamic Jihad, in full coordination.
One day before ending the ceasefire – violated by Hamas before its expiration with new rocket fire towards Israel – the terrorist organization published a statement saying that Shiri Bibas and her children had been killed in an Israeli bombing. He did not present any evidence and the Israeli authorities said it was “psychological terrorism.”
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A few days later, Hamas released another video in which Yarden Bibas is seen crying uncontrollably when told that he no longer has a family, that his wife and children have died. “He looks in very bad condition, with a huge beard, visibly deteriorated and about 15 kilos lighter,” said Jimmy Mille.
“As long as we don't see evidence, we fight for their release, assuming that they are alive,” Jimmy maintains. “We cannot conceive anything else.”
JANA BERIS
FOR THE TIME
JERUSALEM
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