Tag: perserverance

Four more home and more inspiration

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

Four more hostages returned home on Saturday. Karina Ariev, Daniella Gilboa, Naama Levy and Liri Albag, all members of the Israeli Defense Forces, were released from captivity in Gaza by Hamas after 477 days. They were released early in the morning Eastern Time, so when I woke up, they were already out of Gaza.

L: Daniella Gilboa, Karina Ariev, Liri Albag, Naama Levy

When I watched the video of their release, I was horrified. Hamas held a parade to show them off to a cheering crowd. The video clearly shows the support of Hamas and of terrorists who brutally murdered 1,200 people on October 7th and kidnapped another 251 people. It’s more proof of the lies told by the media, the ICC, and the world. There is something very wrong about giving gift bags and certificates to people you have brutally kidnapped and held for 477 days.

The Hamas parading of the 4 hostages to a celebratory crowd in Gaza.

I anxiously awaited the videos and pictures of them reuniting with their families. Last week, those videos were incredibly emotional and both broke and warmed my heart at the same time. Thinking of those who will never come home alive, thinking of those still in captivity, and thinking of what nearly 500 days of captivity would do to a person.

The pictures and videos were amazing. They brought tears to my eyes. It reminded me why Israel made such a terrible deal. 200 terrorists and murderers went free to bring these 4 women home. A terrible deal. And worth it. When I looked at their faces, the faces of their family members, and listed to the sounds of their squeals of delight, it was an insight into the values of Judaism. Life. Family. Love. Perserverance. Humanity.

Naama Levy greeting her family
Daniella Gilboa with her family
Karina Ariev meeting her family
Liri Albag with her family

I’m not sure how any human being can watch these videos and not smile and have tears in their eyes. We’ve seen the brutality of Hamas on October 7th. We’ve seen them murder hostages. They kept these 4 women in captivity for 477 days. An incredible number of days. The hostages in Iran were held for 444 days in much better conditions.

I can understand how these women could be bitter and angry. How they could be filled with resentment. I would expect they would want privacy with the families and loved ones. Amazingly, I would be wrong. Last week we saw the amazing Emily Damari, who lost two fingers on her left hand, inspire us with her bravery and smile. The story of how she tried to get Hamas to release her friend’s father, Keith Siegel, instead of herself, is an epic exhibition of selflessness. This week we got the story of Liri Albag, now 19 years old, send the world a message of love. She has every right to be angry. She has every reason to hate the world that allowed her to remain in captivity for 477 days. Instead, she sent a message of love.

I was astounded as I watched it. Her smile. The heart symbol at the end. Extraordinary. How does somebody come out of 477 days of captivity at 19 years of age with this type of attitude? How much gratitude for her family and for life must she have?

As the day went on, we learned more about their 477 days of captivity. They were used as domestic slaves, often given no food and not allowed to bathe or have any personal hygiene. They were kept in civilians’ home for a good amount of time. Civilians who harbor and hide hostages are not civilians. They are complicit and combatants. As the media decries attacks on civilians, it’s important that we remind them that these ‘civilians‘ are anything but innocent. They were part of the looting after the attacks on October 7th and they helped hide hostages. When the UN or the ICC makes their absurd claims, we have proof that they are lies.

Later in the day, word came out that a member of the Israeli Health Ministry said that the released hostages are in an “emotionally and medically complex” situation. None of us know what that means but it hurts to the core of our hearts. These brave women clearly faced things that are unimaginable. Yet the had brave faces for the world. She wanted to show strength and love in public. We can only pray for their full recovery, physically, mentally, and emotionally.

To summarize what we know about Hamas and these hostages on the day of their release:

  • They were held together in captivity along with Agam Berger, who remains in Gaza, and were separated from her just days ago.
  • In the first days of captivity, an elderly hostage helped ensure they had food and were able to shower. They were able to share that he was killed in captivity.
  • There were periods when there was no food and they were starved
  • The girls were held both in civilian apartments and in Hamas tunnels
  • They were disguised as Arab women when moved from place to place
  • They were able to see some news, mostly to Al Jazeera, and learned to speak Arabic

When they spoke about Hamas’ “release ceremony,” they said, “We showed them on the stage that it did not bother us. We are stronger than that.” Now we all say a mishaberach (prayer for healing) for them to have a full recovery.

The other topic of the day is the Bibas family. They are on the list to be released but have not yet been included. This beautiful family with two beautiful babies were taken hostage on October 7th. We don’t know if they are alive or not. We know that they have a deep meaning to us all. We need them to be alive. We need them to be ok. We need them to come home. If they aren’t alive, I am concerned about what the Jewish world will demand as a pound of flesh for their murders. Kidnapping a 9 month old and a 4 year old is bad enough. Murdering them is unforgivable. If they come home dead, I’m concerned that I will feel like I did at Kfar Aza while I watched and listened to Israel bomb Jabaliya, less than a mile away. In May, that was the only time I felt any relief at Kfar Aza, when the bombs were dropped and exploded. Listening and seeing buildings collapse. It’s not who I am but it is who I was in that moment. The murder of the Bibas family may be that way for not just me but many others. All we can do is pray and hope. All we can do is wait for Hamas to send them home.

The Bibas family – 2 beautiful babies and their parents taken hostage

It is hard to believe that we will go through this same emotional rollercoaster every week for another 5 weeks in this first stage of the ceasefire. 33 hostages will come home over a 7 week, painful period. Hamas wants us to feel the pain. Hamas wants us to agonize. We will. But we can also look at the videos of the released hostages. We look at the images of their reunification with their familes and see the love and gift of life. Their hope and their spirit can get us through this. After nearly 500 days in captivity, the three girls released last week and four girls released this week will continue to give to us. It feels selfish but somehow, I think they would disagree and would understand and appreciate our pain.

I will use this picture of Naama Levy reuniting with her parents. Naama, who’s kidnapping was one of the most seen videos from October 7th. Naama, who we begged to come home and now is. When I look at this picture, it reminds me of a picture I have with my dad, one from my older son’s bar-mitzvah, when we were both filled with joy, happiness, gratitude, and awe. Just like the Levy family who got their precious daughter back alive.

Her hand is a symbol and lesson – but of what?

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

Emily Damari’s hand has become an international symbol.  The pictures are stunning and shocking. When you see her face and her hand, you realize that her hand does not define her, yet it also is a par tof her identity now. Shot in the hand by Hamas on October 7th, kidnapped and held hostage for 471 days, nobody knew what Emily would be like upon her release. What we have seen in just a week is truly remarkable. Her spirit, her smile, and the videos of her with her family warm my heart. It gives me hope for the other hostages and their pending release. It reminds me of my obligation to live and to be an inspiration, not just to my family, but those who know me or know of me.

One of the most beautiful pictures I have seen. Her face, her smile, and her hand show resilience

Her hand is a symbol and an inspiration. But of what? Rabbi Daniel Gordis, in his Israel from the Inside substack, writes about this, stating

“Here are some of the thoughts that I’ve heard from others:

  • It’s a “V” symbol, for “victory”
  • It’s “just” a wave, but Hamas turned her simple into “V”
  • It looks like the letter shin, ש, which is the letter on the Mezuzah, as “shin” stands for “Shadd-ai”, one of the Hebrew names of God 
  • It sort of looks like a heart 

And then, the one that I thought was the most profound:

  • “She’s home, and she’ll heal. But she’ll never be whole. Just like this country.”“

There is so much to think about in that analysis. It may be a ‘V for victory’, but what did we really win? She is home safe, which is a victory, but it is hard to say that we have won anything. Israel defended her citizens, crippled Hamas and Hezbollah, weakened Iran, and as a result, allowed for the toppling of the Assad regime. Yet it’s hard to think of that as a ‘win’. I believe almost everybody would rather the world be as it was on October 6th rather than where we are today, so it’s hard to see anything as a victory.

I love the concept of her hand now looking like the Hebrew letter shin, standing for the name of God. It’s a physical symbol of God and how God is inside all of us. In Emily’s case, she now has an outer symbol of God. It has been noted that her hand is now the same as the sign for “I love you” in American Sign Language. This ties even more into the letter shin as it shows God’s love for us all. I had the privilege and honor of meeting Elie Wiesel three times and having dinner with him twice. Sitting with him, it was clear that he had been touched by God. I feel the same way about Emily. Her hand is the symbol.

When I look, I don’t see a heart. I think it’s a bit of a stretch but I do love the concept. Emily and all the hostages have had our hearts since October 7th. When we learn one of them was murdered, our heart breaks. When we see one of them released, our heart sings. As Jews, we are all mishpacha (family). It’s a reminder of that as well. It is a reminder that no matter how much the terrorists of Hamas and Hezbollah try to take away our morals and ethics and our commitment to life, we will not let them do that. When I see her hand, it reminds me that I have to do better, be better, to make the world a better place.

I agree with Rabbi Gordis on the last one. It is the most profound. And perhaps the most true of them all. October 7th broke us. Going to the Nova site at Re’im was incredibly painful. Visiting Kibbutz Kfar Aza felt like being at Auschwitz just after liberation. I’ll never forget that feeling. Meeting and spending time with the displaced families from Kibbutz Alumim in Netanya as heartbreaking and inspiring and then visiting Kibbutz Alumim two months later, meeting those who moved back, and seeing what the terrorists both did and tried to do there, was deeply moving. We will all heal in some way. Yet we will also not be whole. Emily is the symbol for the entire Jewish world. She is the symbol for Israel. When I visited Israel in May and July iof 2024, you could feel how the country was different. When I went back in September, after the murder of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Ori Danino, Eden Yerushalmi, Almog Sarusi, Alexander Lobanov and Carmel Gat, the country had changed yet again. Israel will heal. Israel will recover. But the Israel of October 6, 2023 will likely never exist again. Neither will any of us.

Kfar Aza in May 2024. When I watch and listen, I still feel the pain and anger that I did on that day.

My friend Fleur Hassan Nahoum picks a scumbag of the week and a hero of the week on her podcast, The Quad, each week. This week, her hero was Emily. As you listen to her talk about Emily, there is so much to identify with. She, and all the hostages, are family. We cried when they were taken. We ached as we thought of what they were enduring. We spoke out for their release and safe return. We celebrate when they are released and we mourn when we find out they have been murdered. Her hand should be the new symbol of giving Hamas “the finger”. They tried to murder us all and kill our spirits. They took her captive and held her for 471 days. She wouldn’t be detered. She is emblematic of the Jewish and the Israeli spirit. When I look at her, when I watch videos of her, I see life. I see future. I see hope.

Emily reminds us all of who we used to be, who we currently are, and who we aspire to be. As she comes home after 471 days that none of us can imagine, after 471 days than none of us would to experience for a single day, she exudes hope, love, and beauty. In a world filled with despair, filled with immense challenges, filled with incredible hate and bigotry, Emily reminds us that there is another path. Even in the worst of times, in the worst of places, enduring the worst of humanity, Emily’s smile shows us we can perservere. We can win by living our lives. We can defeat evil by never letting go of who we are and what we believe.

Drawing by artist Moshe Shapira, the father of Alex Shapira z’l, murdered on October 7, 2023, while hiding with his friends and others in a shelter in Re’im, after fleeing the Nova music festival

Emily is an inspiration. She is a reminder than good can defeat evil. It takes effort. Sometimes herculean effort, like surviving 471 days of captivity and brutality by Hamas. Losing two fingers and having their stubs fused together. Who knows what other horrors she had to face. Yet she survived and brings light to all of us. If Emily can do it, so can we. Let Emily’s spirit inspire all of us to do better, to be better, and to fight harder. Am Yisrael Chai!!