“Pidyon Shvuyim” translated from Hebrew to English means “Redemption of Captives,” my rabbi began. “Torah considers the act of saving a captive one of the most important mitzvahs a person can do.”
Oct. 7 changed lives forever. It will be added to the collective sorrow of the Jewish people, and every year it will act as a reminder that on bloody Sukkot Shabbat, our brother and sisters, mothers, fathers, grandparents and children were burned alive, massacred, tortured, beheaded and raped. In the years, decades and centuries to come, we will still be here to memorialize them, honor their bravery and salute their courage.
More than 200 people, citizens from 33 different countries including Israel, America, The Netherlands, Thailand, Brazil, Eritrea and many other nations were dragged to Gaza and have been held hostage for more than a month. With the release of four hostages and recent reports that most are still alive, we must urge our leaders and demand the immediate release of every hostage. We must stand firm that no hostage can be left behind.
Thirty four days without a touch, a word of comfort, a warm hug. Not a recognizable voice or a hand to hold. Just a maze of cruelty and unknown horror sprinting through the minds of the hostages and their families.
Ofir Engel, a 17-year-old boy with Dutch and Israeli citizenship was kidnapped. He was visiting his girlfriend, Yuval, on Kibbutz Be’eri. Be’eri, once a beautiful place where hundreds of peaceful Jews lived, where funds were collected and donated to their neighbors, the civilians of Gaza, is now a destroyed warzone. Be’eri, once a place where Israelis wished for peace and to share their homeland with their neighbors.
The Hamas terrorists didn’t care that many of the Jews they slaughtered and stole, fought for equality and justice; they simply wanted to murder and kidnap as many Jews as possible. Now hotels are filled with hundreds of mourners sitting shiva for the lost lives of Be’eri. Mourners who are now left with only memories. Many happy times to remember; however, the most recent trauma of loss, terror and horror haunt them daily.
Kibbutz Be’eri became a nightmare. Men separated from women, Ofir and his girlfriend’s father separated from her and her mother. A family physically, mentally and emotionally ripped apart, psychologically terrorized. The proof of savagery remains, blood on the walls and floors, burned homes, doors that once welcomed playing children and Shabbat guests, now splattered with bullet holes, and the smell of stale blood and burnt flesh lingers in the air. This devastating scene is perhaps a reminder that we cannot be quiet until the hostages are released. We will not shut up until they are home, every single one.
I was introduced to Ofir’s family. His aunt, Yael, often the spokesperson for the Engel family, is a beautiful woman, exhausted and ready to break, but she is strong and will not stop until her nephew is home.
Ofir is just a boy, a teenage boy with crystal green eyes, a bright smile and easy spirit. Ofir loves his friends and basketball. He needs his family, and his family needs him. The unknown is a pain that is colder and deeper than the most dismal cement pit. Release Ofir, it’s been 34 days.
These hostages have names and faces. Avigail Idan, a 3-year-old girl, was kidnapped from Kfra Azza. Her parents murdered, Avigail is an orphan. Bring her home. Hersh Goldberg-Polin, a 23-year-old American/Israeli was taken from the peace rave. His mother, Rachel, recently spoke at the United Nations with a strength and determination I’ve never witnessed. Hersh lost his left arm from a grenade while defending his friends from Hamas.
Kfir Bibas is 9 months old; he’s a baby who needs his family. Release him. Yoni Asher’s wife and two daughters, ages 2 and 4, have been missing since the attack. This was not a nameless, faceless act of terrorism that will fade away. These are real people, many of them children, who need their families. We must use our voices, say their names, share photographs of their faces and urge our elected officials that we cannot and will not rest until they are released and returned.
Pidyon Shvuyim must be our No. 1 priority and should be treated with the utmost urgency. The first instinct might be to disseminate Hamas and seek revenge, rightfully so. But that should and must continue after the release of hostages with no one left behind. There is no greater moral obligation than to return the civilians to their families.
Kantar-Cohen is a freelance writer currently working on a memoir.
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