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Viki Cohen, the mother of Nimrod Cohen, who was kidnapped from a burning tank in Rehovot on October 7, 2023, aged just 19, says she longs to walk in the Israeli countryside with her son as a second Pesach without him approaches.
Speaking to the JC, Viki describes how the family has not been able to properly mark any Jewish holidays since the attack. “We used to sit together and share a meal, all the extended family together, and celebrate. But after Nimrod was kidnapped, we don’t have any holidays. We don’t do anything special – it’s just a regular day,” she says.
Pesach was traditionally a time for the Cohen family to enjoy nature and hike in the countryside. The festival, which represents freedom, is particularly painful for Viki because it falls during spring, a time when the countryside is blooming. “Nimrod loves nature and would walk with the family and his friends. We used to hike as a family, but we don’t do it anymore,” she says.
Viki’s reflections come as the families of 59 hostages, held for over 550 days by Hamas in Gaza, prepare for another holiday marked by absence. According to Israeli intelligence, 24 hostages are believed to be alive.
Viki and and her son Nimrod, who has been held hostage in Gaza for over 550 days after being abducted by Hamas on October 7[Missing Credit]
Viki does not know if Nimrod is aware that Pesach is approaching. “He only hears what Hamas chooses to tell him.” Testimony from released hostages has indicated that he has been kept in brutal conditions, confined to a small cage, shackled and tortured.
Until her son is free, Cohen cannot celebrate Pesach or return to her family’s traditions. “We celebrate freedom, but we are still hostages,” she says.
Nivi Feldman, co-lead of the Hostages and Missing Families Forum UK says that the pain of the families of captives “is bigger than ever, raw and becoming more desperate by the day”.
The organisation is urging the UK Jewish community to remember the plight of the hostages by leaving an empty chair at their Seder and posting an image on social media with the hashtags #SederSeatForAHostage, #BringThemHomeNow.
They are also calling on people to incorporate prayers and reflections on the hostages into their Seder. They have produced the Haggadah of Freedom, which interweaves traditional Passover prayers with stories from the returnees and the families of the hostages. These include recollections from Liri Albag and Agam Berger on how they managed to have a Seder while in captivity. All proceeds will go to the forum.
'The Haggadah of Freedom', released by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, includes stories of Israeli hostages alongside the traditional Passover tales. The digital version is still available (Photo: The Hostages and Missing Families Forum)[Missing Credit]
Niv says: “This Passover, as Jewish families worldwide gather to retell the story of liberation, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum UK urges the community to remember the 59 innocent people who have been deprived of their freedom for over a year and a half, since the biggest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.”
Feldman said that they were calling for a deal that would release all the hostages in one stage.
“Healing cannot begin until they are all home. We all have a responsibility to speak up for the hostages and their families and support them during these unimaginable times.
“Their lives are at immediate risk, and the agony of potentially losing their bodies forever, without the dignity of a proper burial, is beyond painful.”
It is a tradition to bake challah in the shape of a key for the first Shabbat after Pesach. (pictured) A baking event at Mill Hill Synagogue last year, led by Tami Isaacs Pearce (right) from Karma Bread and Nivi Feldman (centre) (Photo: Sharna Kingsley)[Missing Credit]
On the first Shabbat after Pesach, she hopes communities will take part in the tradition of baking Shlissel Hafrashat Challah, where challah is baked in the shape of a key, in honour of the hostages.
A digital version of the Haggadah of Freedom is available on stories.bringthemhomenow.net
