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My Daughter Was Killed on October 7; Here Is My Message to the World
The personal belongings of festival-goers are seen at the site of an attack on the Nova Festival by Hamas terrorists from Gaza, near Israel’s border with the Gaza Strip, in southern Israel, Oct. 12, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
Hannie Ricardo’s daughter, Oriya, was murdered on October 7, 2023, at the massacre at the Nova Music Festival. Below is an edited version of a speech that Hannie delivered to mark Yom Hazikaron and Mother’s Day — her first without Oriya.
Since I was a young girl, I have been invited to participate in memorial ceremonies — to read a poem or to sing a song. For many years, I have stood with parents who lost their dear ones, holding their hands and supporting them.
I am taking part in this memorial ceremony today for the first time in my life as אמא שכולה, a mother who lost the most precious thing in life — my daughter.
I dedicate my words today in memory of my beloved Oriya, who gave me 26 years of light, love and happiness, and to her close friends, the couple Sharon Refai and Shahar Manzur, and the brave Eli Refael, Sharon’s brother who came to rescue them and he, too, was murdered with them; and in memory of Roya and Norrelle Manzuri, Ron Zarfati, Ron Yehudai, the best friends Mapal Adam and Hilly Solomon, Omri Aharak, Yarden Buskila, and all the beautiful people who were brutally murdered on October 7, at the Nova Music Festival.
Never again — the couplet of words I heard since my childhood — have become, since the October 7 massacre, a concept empty of content. Now more than ever, we must fill it up with stronger content.
Never again means that we, as Jews, must be united in the understanding that we are here by right and not by grace, not by the grace of people, nor other religions, or the shameless UN, which gives the impression that its entire role is to lend a hand to the haters of the Jewish people, whomever they are.
Never again means to stop apologizing for our existence or making excuses for anything we do to keep our nation striving and flourishing — and above all, protecting ourselves.
Never again means that no rabbi tells his students to hide their Judaism because he is afraid of violent mobs, as many did in Nazi Germany and its affiliates.
Never again is to make your voice heard individually and in a group.
Never again means that it is time to take responsibility, face the voices calling for our destruction, and fight this in any way possible.
Never again. It means you do not ignore the signs before you, or dismiss them as “it will pass” — because they will not, unless you do something.
Never again means you recognize and understand that Islamic terrorism is the Nazi oppressor of the 21st century, and all those students, professors, and their ardent supporters are just like Hitler’s “Brown Shirts,” who controlled the streets with terror and extreme violence, using the Jews as an excuse.
Never again. I used to say that every time I thought of my ancestors that were victims of Jew-hatred under the Nazi occupation, and were gassed and burnt in Auschwitz. Never again, I tell myself, every time I break to pieces, knowing I have lost my daughter to Jew-hatred and Islamic terrorists who murdered her only because she was a Jew.
Jew hatred is a whitewashed word for antisemitism — and we need to stand as one against it.
Anti-Israel, anti-Zionism, and anti-whatever are all the same, and they all call for the annihilation of the Jewish people. They are calling for genocide — our genocide.
I’m standing here today, with pain and agony, with my heart bleeding — but I’m standing, and I’m calling all of you to stand up, stand tall, and call, loudly and clearly, so the whole world will hear and understand: Never again.
Every day at the Nova exhibition, I hear people say: we will never forget. I correct them: you have to be active. Not to forget is passive. You need to remember, and you have to remind. I know I will do that for as long as I live.
And I will end with the words I chose to end the Oratorio Kaddish Oriya and Terezin, which I wrote and dedicated to Oriya, and which will be premiered on October 7, 2024, at the Israeli Opera in Tel Aviv:
אוריה, האם את שומעת? זאת אני, אלייך קוראת. אמא מתגעגעת, ותפילה אלייך נושאת.
עשי שלום עלינו, אוריה, שלום עלינו ועל כל ישראל, ונאמר אמן
And I will repeat in English so everyone can understand:
Oriya, can you hear me? It is me, calling you. Mom misses you and carry a prayer to you:
Make peace upon us, Oriya, upon us and all of Israel, and we shall say Amen.
Hannie Ricardo is an Israeli musician, historian, and educator. She has a Master’s degree in Jewish History, focusing on Holocaust studies, and has studied singing privately in Israel, Italy, and Germany. She has performed as a singer in festivals and private events in Israel, Europe, the Far East, and the US.
The post My Daughter Was Killed on October 7; Here Is My Message to the World first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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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.