The unbearable fate of the Bibas family

A nightmare that doesn't end

I'm writing this mainly for my non-Jewish readers.

You may have seen pictures of this beautiful family in your social media timelines in recent days, or a lot of orange, probably from your Jewish friends. You just might have seen them in the news, depending what outlets you follow. But if you don't already know, I want you to understand why. This is the Bibas family: dad Yarden, mom Shiri, and boys Ariel and Kfir.

On October 7, they were kidnapped from their home in Kibbutz Nir Oz, Israel, and taken to Gaza by H*mas terrorists. More than 200 other people, Israelis and others, were kidnapped that day. Ariel was four. Kfir was just nine months old.

There's an image from that day of Shiri holding her beautiful boys and looking absolutely terrified. As many have already pointed out, it could just as well have been taking during the Holocaust. As a mother, I have been utterly haunted by her pain and fear since that awful day.

For over 500 days, all of Israel, most of the Jewish world, and many more of us who care deeply about Israel and the Jewish people prayed for them desperately and hoped against all odds that they would make it home safely. A beautiful family. A sweet little boy and a precious baby and their loving parents.

Ariel loved Batman and wanted to help people when he grew up. Kfir loved a pink elephant toy. Their fates were literally unimaginable, so we waited and prayed and hoped.

Yarden, who was held separately, was released as part of the ceasefire deal earlier this month. And then last week, it was announced that Shiri, Ariel, and Kfir were dead and their bodies would be released. Before releasing the coffins, their captors held a "ceremony" in which they were mocked.

Back in Israel, forensic investigation quickly and conclusively revealed that the boys were brutally murdered with bare hands and their bodies desecrated to make it look like they were killed in an air strike. The body presented as Shiri's wasn't even hers, due to a "mix-up." She was later returned, too.

I write this because the burden shouldn't have to rest entirely on Jews to explain the realities of genocidal antisemitism. There are truly no words. A baby, a toddler, and their mother.

Please pray for them and for their family, especially Yarden, whose grief is beyond imagination. Please share their pictures. Please remember their names.