Dozens of relatives and supporters gathered in Tel Aviv on Wednesday to mark the 35th anniversary of Yarden Bibas, kidnapped during the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023. Bibas, who celebrates his birthday on Thursday, is the first hostage to spend two birthdays in captivity in Gaza. The family held a sober ceremony on Hostage Square, where his sister Ofri unveiled a wrought iron sign reading “HOME” that Yarden had made as a gift when she moved to the kibbutz.
“We’re not a family that celebrates birthdays a lot,” Ofri said, “but there was always a cake, dinner and a crown that Shiri made for you, like for the kids in kindergarten. This reality is so far from us now,” she added, referring to Bibas’ wife, also hostage with their two young children Ariel and Kfir.
Attendees marked Yarden’s birthday with Goldstar beers and milk pie, his favorite foods. Nili Margalit, a former hostage released in December 2023, revealed that Hamas terrorists had forced Yarden to record a video accusing Netanyahu of refusing to repatriate the bodies of her allegedly killed family. Israel has not confirmed their deaths.
After the ceremony, Ofri Bibas sharply criticized the government: “I am very, very angry – furious – that they are still not here. I think there have been many opportunities, and they could already be here .” She added that she had not invited politicians to the ceremony: “After a year, I just don’t believe them anymore.”
Regarding his captive family, Ofri said: “I don’t know their condition. I don’t know if they are alive or dead, I don’t know where they are, I don’t know anything.” In a message to her brother, she said: “We love you very, very much and we miss you. I don’t have much to wish for, except for your freedom, and for you to be able to hug again Shiri in your arms, kiss Ariel and Kfir and be with them, and may we celebrate your next birthday, and many more after that, together.”
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