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"With this painting, I am taking you with me back to Gaza, to the darkest place on earth," Yarden Bibas said of his work that is exhibited at the Ben Gurion International Airport along with other artwork from hostages who were released from Hamas captivity.
Bibas, whose wife and two little boys were murdered after they were taken hostage during the Hamas massacre of October 7, was himself held captive for nearly 500 days and released only last January.
Butterflies symbolize my sweet Ariel, together with the beloved Shiri and Kfir," Yarden Bibas wrote about his painting, which he called Freedom and Love. "Butterflies also symbolize freedom, air, and sunlight. These are symbols of independence. The freedom for me is in the ability to create again, to work with my hands, as I had done before everything happened," he wrote.
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Yarden Bibas in art workshop after returning from captivity in Gaza
(Photo: Lior Rotstein)
4 View gallery
Yarden Bibas paints butterflies
(Photo: Courtesy of Hostages and Missing Families Forum)
"Butterflies appear in nature on warm days, when families go out on walks. Through them, I am sending my love to Shiri, Ariel and Kfir. Through them, I also demand freedom for the hostages who are still held in captivity. There is no independence until all the hostages are home. On this Memorial Day for the fallen soldiers, no family should be left without a tombstone to visit."
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Raz Ben Ami, whose husband Ohand was also released earlier this year after nearly 500 days as a hostage of Hamas and who was also held captive until her release in the first exchange in 2024, said there is no independence while Israelis are still held captive. Our family was reunited and is whole again but we cannot move forward until all the others are back."
Levi Ben Baruch, whose cousin Edan Alexander, an IDF soldier with dual Israeli-American citizenship, is held by Hamas in Gaza, called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his cabinet to bring the hostages home so that the families can begin healing. "We have one mission as a nation and that is to bring them all back, those who are alive, for life and those who are dead, for an honorable burial," Levi said.
"Stop this madness now. It is time. Edan needs you! 59 hostages are crying out to you to bring them home. They, too, want independence. Do your jobs, make a deal to release all of them."