On October 7^th, Hamas terrorists launched an assault from Gaza into Israel which saw some 1300 Israelis brutally murdered, thousands more injured, and some 240 people – ranging in age from babies to senior citizens – taken hostage in Gaza. The atrocities undertaken that day, only some of which have been made fully public given the traumatic nature of what ensued, will live forever in infamy as one of the most horrific human rights abuses of modern times. Since then, Israel has begun a campaign designed to drive Hamas out of Gaza, to ensure that a repeat attack of this nature can never again occur, and that Israeli civilians are safe from terrorism.

But at the heart of what happened on October 7^th are human stories. Whether it is lives lost, families torn apart or the anguish of not knowing what has happened to loved ones, hardly anyone in a small country like Israel has gone untouched by the crisis.

In order to hear firsthand the human effects of this tragedy, HJS is honoured to be hosting Doron Libshtein – who lost four members of his family in the Hamas rampage – and Orit Mair, whose son Almog was taken hostage by Hamas. We invite you to hear their stories in conversation with Benjamin Anthony of the MirYam Institute.

The Henry Jackson Society is hosting this timely discussion in partnership with ELNET UK.

On October 7th, four members of Doron Libshtein’s family were murdered by Hamas. His brother was murdered. His nephew was murdered and a further two members of his extended family were murdered.

Orit Meir’s son, Almog, was kidnapped by Hamas on October 7th and is being held hostage inside the Gaza Strip. No word on the health or status of her son has been provided. No visits have been paid to her son by the International Red Cross.

Benjamin Anthony is co-founder of The MirYam Institute, an organization that has brought the testimony of the family of the murdered and the hostages to Capitol Hill. He will interview Doron and Orit during their time in the UK.

To learn more about The MirYam Institute visit www.MirYamInstitute.org.

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EVENT SUMMARY

The Henry Jackson Society and the European Leadership Network (ELNET) hosted an interview by Benjamin Anthony, the co-founder of MirYam Institute with a couple of Israeli parents whose children had been kidnapped by Hamas and currently being held as hostages. The first mother, Orit Meir described her son Almog’s last call with her before he was kidnapped by Hamas on October 7^h. He was attending a festival in southern Israel when suddenly Hamas started shooting attendants then at 3pm that day, Hamas sends a video to her showing him tied up in a basement looking terrified. Orit begged for the international community to bring her son home.

Doron later played videos in memory of his brother, Ofir, who died protecting his family at Kfar Aza, the kibbutz right on the Gaza-Israeli border in the western Negev desert when Hamas terrorists raided the village and killed many people including children and infants. He went on to say that Israel needs to free Palestinians of Hamas rule and to get the 240 kidnapped Israelis home, but they cannot do that and move on unless the UK government understands that now is the time for collaboration.

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