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Beloved President-elect Donald Trump,
My name is Ofri Bibas Levy. Although you may not know me personally, you have surely heard of my brother Yarden Bibas, his wife Shiri, and Ariel and Kfir, their two red-headed children who have won hearts around the world. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu he gave you a photo of young Ariel holding a picture of Batman, with the words, “I fly and save people trapped in a hole”—just as he and many others are trapped today.
These children and their parents lived a normal family life—the busy lifestyle of parents with two young children—until they are taken from us more than a year ago. There is still hope: intelligence confirms that more than HALF of the 100 hostages are still in captivity. they livebut their time is running out fast. My family members are among those we can still save, but only if we act now.
The Bibas family, from left: Yarden, Ariel, Shiri and Kfir (Levy Free offer)
On Oct. 7, 2023, they were violently cut off from their daily lives. Yarden, their father, made the painful decision to separate from his family in a desperate attempt to protect them, but despite his efforts, his young sons Ariel and Kfir were kidnapped together and their mother, Shiri. Footage of their abduction—showing terrified children in their mother's arms—became a terrifying symbol of Hamas' brutality. Two months later, Hamas brutality reached new heights when they released a psychological warfare video showing them torturing Yarden in captivity, brutally telling him that his wife and children were dead—they try to destroy his spirit.
Recently, the world marked International Children's Rights Day, a commemoration first started by Pastor Charles Leonard of the Universal Church in Chelsea, Mass., 168 years ago. On this important day, the United Nations adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child—a powerful convention that puts the well-being of children above all else. This declaration binds all of us to protect children from torture, abuse, exploitation and neglect.
Kfir Bibas, left, and Ofri Bibas Levy, right, smile together under a tree.
Where is this commitment in these young children? Our shy, happy Ariel was forced to celebrate her fifth birthday in the tunnels of Hamas, under the watchful eyes of deadly terrorists, away from family and friends who love her. For more than a year, we have suffered from not knowing the conditions that she and her baby brother Kfir endured. Abducted when he was just nine months old, Kfir has already spent his birthday in captivity and will soon mark his second birthday this January in the hands of terrorists – if we don't act soon . Time is of the essence—while we know that many of the hostages are still alive, their conditions are getting worse every day. These innocent men, women, and children struggle to survive under terrible conditions, making every moment of delay not only painful, but unbearable. be forgiven.
Kfir Bibas, nine months old. (Courtesy: Bring Them Home Now)
I turn to you, Mr. Trump, with an urge and a plea: Help us where we have all failed. Use your unique, uncompromising, and creative approach to bring Kfir, Ariel, Shiri and Yarden back to us. Returning all 100 hostages from Gaza is not only ethical and moral – it is our humanitarian obligation.
After many painful months, there are finally negotiations for an agreement. We must use this opportunity to secure the release of all prisoners held by Hamas—men, women, the elderly, and children—and reunite them with their families. Time is of the essence to push this deal forward, and the return of the hostages is a prerequisite for stability in the Middle East. There will be no peace until we bring them home: the living—more than half of those taken—for restoration, and the dead for a proper burial.
We appreciate the efforts of the American administration and others over the past year, and we ask you, President Trump, to lend us your voice and your hand so that Kfir and Ariel can celebrate their next birthday at home with us and their friends. . It is their right and our duty. Therefore, many precious lives can still be saved.