Orange balloons fill the skies above Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square on Thursday as hundreds gathered to mark the grim milestone of the first birthday of Kfir Bibas, who is a hostage in Hamas captivity. Thursday, January 18, 2024. (Photo: Debbie Weiss)
Dozens of orange balloons filled the skies above Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square on Thursday as hundreds gathered to mark the grim milestone of the first birthday of Kfir Bibas, the youngest hostage to be abducted by Hamas during its onslaught of southern Israel October 7.
Kfir was taken hostage along with his brother Ariel, 4, and parents Yarden and Shiri, from their home in Kibbutz Nir Oz. Nir Oz was one of the hardest hit communities of the attacks, with more than a quarter of its residents murdered or abducted.
Israeli performers, celebrities and Bibas family members addressed the crowd at the event, dubbed by the family as “the saddest birthday in the world.”
There have been no recent updates on the family’s condition or whether they are even alive. Shortly after the truce in November, in which most of the children were released, the Hamas terror group announced that Shiri and her two sons had been killed in an airstrike but no evidence was provided for this claim.
A birthday cake for Kfir Bibas, who is a hostage in Hamas captivity. Thursday, January 18, 2024. (Photo: Debbie Weiss)
Hamas later released a video of Yarden Bibas in which he appeared to be in acute anguish, crying over the alleged death of his family and blaming Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Israel maintains that all videos released by Hamas are part of its psychological terror campaign and likely scripted by the terror group.
“We don’t even know if Shiri realizes that today is her son’s birthday,” Yossi Shneider, a cousin of the family, said at the event.
Another cousin, Yifat Zailer, said that despite the anguish, the family was holding out hope.
“We are angry and desperate and heartbroken but we are still hopeful that they’re okay,” Zailer told The Algemeiner.
Asked if she had a message to convey to the Bibases on the off chance that they could hear her, Zailer said: “We want to tell them to remain strong and to know that the whole family is gathering together and going all around the world to meet diplomats and whoever we can to get them out of there.”
Tzipi Nov, who came to the event wearing an orange shirt in a nod to the Bibas boys distinctive red hair, expressed anger at the world for not doing more to get the hostages freed and for not doing more to stem the tide of radical Islam.
“It is unacceptable that only in Israel people care and the rest of the world doesn’t. I find myself trying to convince people overseas that this is a global issue,” Nov told The Algemeiner.
“Radical Islam has reared its head in a very dangerous way and people are ignoring it. I’m here for the little boy but also to tell the world to be careful. Tomorrow it’ll be your child, your grandchild and great grandchild.”
Yarden Raelbrook’s emotions were mixed. “As a soldier, it makes me feel good to see everyone come together to be with this baby,” she said. “But it’s so sad. The pain is unimaginable.”
Eli Dyamant, a friend of Kfir’s grandfather who came with his own grandson to the event, said: “To think that a child his age is being held by Hamas. I look at my grandson and my heart breaks. He and Kfir are the same age.”
Michal Weizman, a children’s entertainer who sang at the event, said the whole world had been moved by Kfir and his family’s plight.
“How much we are all missing this baby that we don’t even know,” she said. “And here we celebrate a birthday with balloons and wishes and cake, but without the birthday boy himself.”
