Shabbat morning in Tel Aviv had a different energy as the city’s Hostage Square hosted over a thousand people who showed up to watch and support the release of four female hostages from Hamas captivity.
Live streams and updates were projected on stage as Hamas terrorists handed freed captives Liri Albag, Daniella Gilboa, Karina Ariev, and Naama Levy into Red Cross custody, returning home to Israel.
Music played, and Israeli flags waved through the air as people eagerly waited for confirmation that all four women were not only in the custody of Israeli authorities but back in Israeli territory.
People shed tears as each update appeared on screen, with the crowd erupting as the vehicles carrying the freed women crossed over the Gaza border, bringing them one step closer to being reunited with their families.
Supporters came from all walks of life but had one shared sentiment: each and every hostage must come home now.
Noam, 21, from Tel Aviv, held a Liri Albag poster with small inscriptions on the image, including a crossed-off age to note that she has been in captivity long enough to have passed a birthday in captivity. “I am friends with a cousin of Liri’s, and she has not missed a moment to talk about her,” Noam told The Jerusalem Post following Liri’s release. “When she told us that she was being released today, she was like, ‘We can finally breathe!’”
Cleo, a friend accompanying Noam, jumped in with an enthusiastic call to action: “We cannot wait any longer! They all need to come home so families can be reunited, so people can have proper burials, everything,” she said. “Bring them all home!”
ADAM HODARA, 38, from Petah Tikva, was with a group led by his wife, which advocated specifically for the release of the surveillance soldiers kidnapped by Hamas.
Released hostage Daniela Gilboa is from his town, allowing his wife to work relatively closely and semi-frequently with Gilboa’s mother, Orly. “This is the first time I am using this phrase today, but it really has been a roller coaster,” Hodara said. Though he expressed joy that four women were coming home, he was still concerned about the remaining captives waiting for release. His shirt mirrored this sentiment, reading, “We don’t close our eyes until they’re all coming back.”
“On the one hand, of course, I’m excited and very happy for these girls coming back to Israel. But on the other hand, we have 90 citizens there, including two little kids, a two-year-old and a five-year-old. So, it’s exciting, but it feels weird to be happy,” he told the Post.
Hodara noted a question from a foreign reporter earlier that morning that resonated with him, asking for his thoughts on soldiers being released before some other citizens, and shared how he answered. “I told him, I mean, we are all human beings. It doesn’t matter if you are a soldier or not a soldier – we need to get back everyone.”
A mindfulness and meditation instructor outside of his advocacy for the release of hostages, he expressed his mantra from the experience. “We all deserve peace, love, and kindness, and I mean, sorry if it sounds cliché, but we all deserve this.”
Hodara continued, emphasizing Israel’s right to defend itself, but called for an end to the war. “Yeah, we have the right [to self-defense], but I don’t think that we need to continue this war because, I’m sorry, there are also kids there in Gaza like Ariel and Kfir… There are also citizens there who want peace. I really do believe in that.”
‘Most sane citizens don’t look for wars’
He also emphasized that wars do not start at the hands of citizens but rather in the hands of leadership. “Most sane citizens don’t look for wars. The ones who look for wars are those who manage us, like our government and that of every other country.”
ISRAELI-CANADIAN couple Denise and Aryeh Abres landed in Israel on Friday from Montreal, where the family relocated for work with their Israeli-born children more than 20 years ago. Though the couple visits frequently, they felt the timing was meaningful, and they quickly knew how they would spend their first day back in the Holy Land.
As the couple spoke with the Post, their young grandson, Ari, sat on “Saba Ari’s” shoulders. When asked how the couple felt about their grandson’s future in Israel, they noted, “On one hand, Israel is probably the safest country in the world today. On the other hand, I hope things are going to be better by the time he goes to the army.”
“Back in Montreal, every week we are showing up to show support to bring home all of the hostages,” Denise said. “As exciting as it is, it’s also heartbreaking for the other 90 hostages that are there, who should have been home over a year ago, and they didn’t have to go through all this suffering.”
Two of the couple’s children have since moved back to Israel, one on aliyah with her family post-October 7, and another to complete an MBA. “Whenever we walk through the entryway at the airport, we see all the posters. But it was a great feeling to learn that some of them would be coming home the next day,” Denise said. “Every single one of them must be brought home – and faster!”
Israeli_American, WHO is 34 and originally from New York, has been running a social media account to combat misinformation and share personal stories about October 7 and the aftermath. “I started it on October 9, mainly as a way of coping personally with the situation and the shock of what we experienced as a nation and as a need to get the truth out there with so much misinformation online and so many bot accounts that are spreading this misinformation,” she said.
IA (not her real name) arrived at Hostage Square around 10:30 a.m. after learning that the release had already been underway. She noted that she was unable to attend last Sunday’s release at the square. “I think emotionally, the last release, I wasn’t even able to be here because it has a very personal impact on me, especially not knowing which hostages are going to be released each time.”
She noted that she is distantly related to the Bibas family – parents Yarden and Shiri, and children Ariel and Kfir.
IA emphasized the importance of respecting the privacy and general well-being of the affected families. “With all the rumors going around and not knowing about their well-being, I think, personally, it’s very difficult to get through this time. So there’s a lot of joy, obviously, and I’m happy for each life that is saved and each hostage that returns to us.
“Seeing some of the images of them hugging their mothers makes all the difference. But at the same time, every single time that there’s a bit of good news, I still can’t help but be in this unknown situation where I don’t know if my family is coming back,” IA shared.
“I feel very connected, and there’s nowhere I would rather be this morning,” she said. “I’m also thinking about Agam [Berger], who has not been returned to us today, and I’m thinking about my relatives, and I’m thinking about all the 90 hostages that are not coming home and their families who don’t know when they’re coming home and what their current state is.”
Though the end may be in sight, Hostage Square attendees all shared the same feeling: not one more day can pass before each and every last hostage is brought home.
Though Israelis are stricken with grief over the last nearly 500 days, they are also hopeful for the release of every remaining hostage. The square will continue to be filled for upcoming releases until every captive has been freed and is back home in Israel.
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