Day 570 Of The War: The Political Battle For The Hostages

It’s hard to believe that today marks 570 days since October 7, and 59 hostages, both dead and alive, are still in Gaza.

Last Saturday night, at the protest on Begin Road, I had the chance to hear a clear message from Yehuda Cohen, the father of the soldier-hostage Nimrod Cohen. He bravely said that Netanyahu has made the struggle to bring back the hostages political, and as a result, he now finds himself fighting a political battle just to bring his son home. Yehuda promised that once his son returns, he will leave this fight and focus solely on his son’s wellbeing.

Yehuda Cohen made it clear that his fight is not about opposing the occupation or saving the poor children in Gaza; he is fighting to bring back his son. His message was not soft; he did not speak to appease the crowd, even though many of us are deeply concerned about the suffering of those children and demand an end to the war that is killing them. Still, it was important to listen to such an honest and courageous man, who spoke his truth during such a horrific time. He didn’t care whether we liked what he said—he simply spoke his mind.

I was grateful to Yehuda for making the distinction between what is important to him and what is important to those whose loved ones are not being held in the tunnels of Gaza, starving and being tortured.

The next speaker was Gali Mir Tibon, who, on October 7, evacuated wounded soldiers from the battlefield. She said, “I am a 63-year-old grandmother, and I evacuated the wounded soldiers because we do not leave the wounded to die.” She reminded us that on October 10, Hamas offered to return the women and children—Shiri Bibas and her children were still alive in Gaza at that time—but Netanyahu refused.

 Gali Meer Tibon is a writer, but she is also the wife of Major General Noam Tibon. Together, Gali and Noam saved many lives on October 7 as they made their way to Nahal Oz to rescue their son and family, who were hiding in a safe room while Hamas brutalized the kibbutz.

There were other powerful speakers as well.
Gal Goren from Nir Oz, whose parents Maya and Avner were murdered by Hamas, and whose mother’s body,  is still in Gaza, said, “Bereavement is not predestined. Those who abandon the dead will not bring back the wounded and will abandon the living as well.”
We all knew exactly whom he was speaking about.

As I was leaving the protest, I saw a large group of people sitting quietly on the road, holding photos of Palestinian civilians who had been killed in the 570 days of the war. It was a very sad and respectful, silent protest. I was grateful for their presence.
We must end this war.