'How can I grieve?' - Mother of slain hostage pleads for a grave to visit as Israelis continue weekly protests for hostage deal

With another week passed in the war with Hamas, Israelis once again took to the streets to protest both the ongoing conflict in Gaza and the Netanyahu government. The recent release of Edan Alexander has brought a glimmer of hope to what has otherwise felt like a prolonged nightmare for many Israelis – especially for the families of hostages still held in Gaza.

It’s not only the families of confirmed living hostages who are crying out, but also those of the deceased – still desperate to bring their loved ones home.

One of the voices highlighted at last night’s protest in Hostages Square in Tel Aviv was that of Ifrat Haiman. Her daughter, Inbar, had volunteered to help “run things” at the Nova Music Festival in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas along with thousands of Gazans breached the border, massacring 1,200 Israelis and taking 251 hostages into Gaza.

Haiman said her daughter "fled for hours" before she was caught by gunmen and taken into Gaza. Inbar’s death was confirmed on day 70 of the Gaza war, yet Haiman shared that she still needs her daughter to be returned to Israel so she can fully grieve. “We sat shiva without a funeral,” she said. “I still feel her next to me. Maybe it sounds strange, but I need to see her to know what happened. It’s been nearly 590 days. I have no grave, no place to light a candle, no place to lay a flower.”

“How can I grieve when she’s still lying there in Gaza? How long must I wait?” she asked. “The hostages must come back not only for us, their families, but because their return will be the true victory.”

Levi Ben Baruch – uncle of recently returned hostage, Edan Alexander – also spoke at the rally. Recounting the family’s mixed emotions following his nephew’s release, he said, “Edan came back with kind, tired eyes and a beating heart. Our joy is indescribable – but so is our pain. As we say in the Rosh Hashanah prayer, ‘The eye weeps bitterly and the heart rejoices.’”

“Edan’s return must open the door to an agreement that brings all the hostages home – those still alive for rehabilitation, and those killed for a proper burial,” the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said in a statement. “Time is running out. The world is watching. History will not forget. There is only one way – we will bring them back. We will rise.”

Ben Baruch encouraged the crowd to see Alexander’s return as proof that peace is possible. “Edan came back to show us that you don’t need war to return. You can talk. We can bring all of them back – not just one or ten – all of them.”

Reports from released hostages confirm that, at times, they could hear the IDF nearby – whether in tunnels above their heads or from the streets outside civilian homes where they were being held. Captors forced them to remain silent as Hebrew voices echoed just beyond reach.

Ben Baruch underscored the danger that the ongoing fighting poses to the hostages themselves. “The fighting continues above the heads of the hostages. They hear it, feel it, are hurt by it – and it threatens them every moment,” he said. “It also threatens us, dulling our hearts and breaking our spirit.”

As the rally drew to a close, Ben Baruch reminded protestors that their voices matter – even to those still in captivity. “Edan saw you marching, holding signs, raising his voice and theirs. Your presence was a beacon, giving him the strength to survive another day, another night. Don’t stop.”