In the first days after October 7, when the shock and grief felt too much to bear, the phrase most spoken by Israelis was "Ein milim" — there are no words.

Now, again.

What words can be summoned to capture the grief of the Jewish people for the slain Kfir and Ariel Bibas, brutally murdered at ages 10 months and four years old. Kfir, whose name means “lion cub,” and Ariel, whose name means “lion of God,” with their bright red hair, were the most recognized of the original 251 hostages. Kfir, we learned early on, was the very youngest. 

For these 500-plus days, we had hoped against hope that they would return alive. How could we not hope? In their beautiful smiles, we saw our own children and grandchildren. Little lions, guilty of nothing but being born Jewish.

And what words can begin to convey the agony of discovering that Hamas had sent someone else’s remains in place of their mother, Shiri Bibas. Our hearts are with the boys’ father and Shiri’s husband, Yarden, himself only recently released from captivity. We send him not just our sorrow, but the strength of an entire people.

Hostage posters of the Bibas family in their destroyed home in Kibbutz Nir Oz

We are also utterly devastated by the loss of Oded Lifshitz, who, at 83, was among the oldest hostages. One of the founders of Kibbutz Nir Oz, a peace activist, a journalist for a left-leaning publication, and a great-grandfather, Oded volunteered to drive Palestinians to Israeli hospitals for treatment.

His grandson Daniel became a powerful advocate for the hostages, and many of us at UJA — through our support of the Hostage and Missing Families Forum — had the privilege of getting to know him. Just last Friday, Daniel wrote to us, saying it was “one of the happiest days” of his life because some of his closest friends from Kibbutz Nir Oz were being freed by Hamas the next day. Now, he mourns his beloved grandfather.

In this time of grief and outrage, we cannot allow ourselves to become numb, and we cannot allow the world to turn away. 

Last night, New Yorkers gathered in Columbus Circle for a vigil organized by the Hostage Forum. And we invite you to join us this Sunday, February 23, at noon, for a rally supporting the hostages at the Naumburg Bandshell in Central Park. 

Let us fill the space with thousands of people and draw comfort in knowing that we share the same pain, and we are fighting the same fight:

To bring every last hostage home. 

Shabbat shalom