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As Kfir Bibas turns 1 in captivity, supporters from Tel Aviv to Davos mark ‘the saddest birthday in the world’
TEL AVIV (JTA) — Three weeks after her cousin was abducted and taken to Gaza along with her family, Yifar Zailer said she knew one thing for sure: “I don’t want to be here in two months, celebrating Kfir’s first birthday.”
And yet that’s exactly what Zailer did on Thursday, returning to Hostages Square in Tel Aviv for what her family had dubbed “the saddest birthday in the world.”
Zailer was there along with hundreds of others to mark the first birthday of Kfir Bibas, the youngest hostage to be taken hostage when Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7.
Kfir and his 4-year-old brother Ariel became an early face to the hostage crisis that morning, when Hamas released a video clip showing them being abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz along with their mother Shiri, whose terror was visible. Their father Yarden Bibas was also abducted.
In November, all of the other child hostages and their mothers were released during a ceasefire deal. Shortly afterwards, Hamas said Kfir, Ariel and Shiri Bibas had all been killed in captivity, offering no evidence but releasing a video in which an anguished Yarden exhorted Israel to end its war. Israel has not confirmed or denied Hamas’ claims.
Zailer said there had been no information about the family’s status delivered privately, either. And so both she and the legion of advocates who have converted a central square in Tel Aviv into a lobbying location to bring the hostages home planned a birthday party befitting the lively redheaded boy who has spent a quarter of his life in captivity.
Many people in the crowd were wearing orange in homage to the two brothers’ distinctive red hair and clutching orange balloons. The balloons were released at the end of the event to the tune of “They Call Me Gingi,” a new song composed for the baby by several Israeli performers whose lyrics include, “I was left behind / they say I’m a hero / I don’t know why.”
Judith Paz, who has been volunteering with the Bibas family in charge of English-language content on its social media channels, said she refused to wish Kfir a happy birthday because there was “nothing happy about it.”
“But next year, we’ll all be here celebrating because there will be a huge party for Kfir’s second birthday in Hostages Square, together with Kfir and the rest of his family,” she said.
Other gatherings honoring Kfir took place around the world, with orange balloons being released in several European cities, a candlelight vigil by members of the U.S. Congress, and an art show in Berlin featuring works by a member of the extended Bibas family.
A photo of Kfir was also on display next to Israeli President Isaac Herzog during his address at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday. He revealed that he had met with officials from the Red Cross in Israel two days earlier to discuss “the clear and present danger to our hostages.”
Around 150 high-ranking executives, including prominent Jewish business leaders Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy, Dell CEO Michael Dell, Meta COO Sheryl Sandberg, held a meeting with released hostages at the forum.
Judith Paz, who has been volunteering with the Bibas family, says she will celebrate Kfir Bibas’ birthday when he is home. (Deborah Danan)
Rachel Goldberg-Polin, whose son Hersh was taken captive to Gaza after having his arm blown off, called on the corporate leaders to “leverage their global connections to immediately advance a deal without delay,” according to a statement released by the Hostages Families Forum.
Nili Margalit, who was kidnapped from her home in Kibbutz Nir Oz and subsequently released during November’s truce, said there was “not enough air to breathe” in the subterranean tunnels she was held in.
“Most of the people I was with in the tunnels are still being held deep underground, and they are terrified and wounded,” she said according to the statement. “The hostages could die any day. Every hour is dangerous for them.”
Zailer, who like the Bibases holds Argentinian citizenship, has been all around the world tirelessly advocating for her family’s release.
“We’re doing everything we can to push our government and other governments to make this deal [with Hamas] to get them out,” she said.
A breakthrough in talks took place this week, with Hamas agreeing for the first time to allow medicine in for the hostages. But it has not yet agreed to allow Red Cross doctors to visit the roughly 100 living Israelis understood to be in Gaza — Hamas is also believed to be holding the bodies of about 30 Israelis, including two whose deaths were confirmed this week — no further progress around releasing additional hostages has been reported.
“We need a deal now,” said Yossi Schneider, another cousin. Referring to Hamas’ chief in Gaza whom Israeli officials say has surrounded himself with hostages, he added, “Yahya Sinwar can be killed any day, but Kfir and the others have no more time.”
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The post As Kfir Bibas turns 1 in captivity, supporters from Tel Aviv to Davos mark ‘the saddest birthday in the world’ appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.