February 22, 2025, New York, NY – The American Jewish Congress is deeply moved by the long-awaited release of six living hostages who have finally been reunited with their families after enduring the horrors of captivity by the murderous terrorist organization Hamas. This long-overdue release comes after incredibly painful days for all of us, following the return of the bodies of Kfir Bibas, a 9-month-old baby, Ariel Bibas, 4 years old, their mother Shiri Bibas, 32, and Oded Lifshitz, 84, who were kidnapped from their home in Nir Oz and murdered by Hamas while in captivity. The children’s father, Yarden, was also kidnapped on October 7 and was recently released after 16 months of brutal captivity.
Yesterday, Hamas returned Shiri’s body after initially handing over an unidentified woman’s body that was later confirmed not to be Shiri’s.
Yesterday, the IDF Spokesperson published the autopsy findings of Kfir and Ariel, innocent small children who were kidnapped by Hamas. The findings are consistent with existing intelligence assessments and confirm that Hamas terrorists murdered the babies with their bare hands and then desecrated their bodies to make it appear as though they had died in IDF strikes. This is cruelty beyond comparison.
For 16 months, we have heard antisemitic protesters call Hamas terrorists “freedom fighters.” What kind of “freedom fighters” are capable of suffocating defenseless babies with their own hands and then attempting to cover up the atrocity by burning and blowing up their bodies?
The IDF Spokesperson stated: “Yarden Bibas, the father of the family, left his home on October 7 and physically shielded his family with his body before being kidnapped to Gaza. Yarden looked me in the eyes last night and asked that the entire world know and be horrified by how his children were murdered. The murder of children violates every moral, ethical, and religious principle […]. These extremist murderers committed a monstrous crime, behaving toward the helpless just as ISIS did. Yarden, an entire nation mourns your pain. We are committed to you and to all the hostage families to do everything possible to bring back all the hostages as soon as possible.”
And despite these dark days, this morning brings a ray of hope with the release of Eliya Cohen (27), Omer Wenkert (23), Omer Shem Tov (22), and Tal Shoham (40), who were kidnapped on October 7, as well as Avera Mengistu (38) and Hisham al-Sayed (37), who had been held by Hamas for nearly a decade!
This week, the President of the American Jewish Congress, Daniel Rosen, visited the home from which Tal Shoham and his family were kidnapped in Be’eri. We stood inside the “safe room” where Tal and his family endured moments of terror on October 7, as explosions rang out around them, gunfire and Arabic shouting echoed throughout the kibbutz, fires raged, and Hamas terrorists slaughtered their neighbors in their yards while the smoke from the flames choked their room, forcing them into the hands of the terrorists. Today, Tal was reunited with his family, including his young children Neve and Yahel, who were also kidnapped and held by Hamas until their release in the first hostage deal.
Eliya Cohen attended the Nova festival with his partner Ziv, her nephew Amit Ben Aviva Z”L, and Amit’s partner Karin Schwartzman Z”L who were murdered on Oct. 7. When the attack began, the four of them hid in a shelter that was later named the “Shelter of Death.” From this shelter, four people were kidnapped: Hirsch Goldberg-Polin Z”L, Or Levy, Alon Ahel, and Eliya Cohen. Hirsch was murdered in a tunnel, Or was released last Saturday after 491 days in captivity – but Alon and Eliya remained in Hamas’ inhumane conditions. After the abduction, Ziv learned that Eliya had planned to propose to her and had even purchased a ring.
Omer Wenkert and his friends arrived at the Nova festival just an hour before the attack. His last message to his family at 7:01 AM was: “I’m terrified.” His mother, Niva, recounted: “As soon as the rockets started, we called him. We know that he left the area with Kim Damti Z”L in a car toward Re’im. They found a shelter and stopped there. It was one of the two shelters that took the most hits.” Eight grenades were thrown into the shelter where Omer was. His friend Kim was murdered, and he was one of the few who survived.
Omer Shem Tov was kidnapped from the Nova festival in Re’im on October 7. He was held in captivity with Itay Regev, who was released along with his sister Maya in the November 2023 hostage exchange. Omer’s father, Malki, said: “When they collected medicine to send to the hostages, we sent an inhaler for Omer. We put a lot of pressure, and I hope it really reached him. I imagined that if he suddenly received the inhaler, it would be a huge sign that we were doing everything to bring him back.”
Avera Mengistu crossed the security fence near the Zikim beach area over a decade ago and has been held by Hamas ever since. A relative said: “People don’t know how deeply he was affected by his brother’s death, which led to his confusion and suffering. Since then, we’ve known him as someone struggling with mental illness.”
Hisham al-Sayed is also mentally ill and has been held by Hamas in Gaza since 2015 after crossing the border. When footage of him was first released in 2022, his mother Manal said: “I was relieved to see him, but I saw that he was not feeling well.” His father, Shaaban, added at the time: “According to Islam, a mentally ill person is not accountable under the law. There is a religious commandment not to judge them; even God does not.”
We are overjoyed to see Eliya, Omer, Tal, Omer, Avera, and Hisham back home. We are determined to ensure the immediate release of all the hostages. The atrocities of Hamas prove that the hostages are being held by monsters, and every second in captivity is the difference between life and death.
