From the Liveblog of
Monday, February 10, 2025
Hundreds at Hostages Square mark 24th birthday of hostage Alon Ohel: ‘The boy whose piano is his second home’
About a thousand people, most wrapped in several layers, thanks to the chilly winter evening, gather at Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square to mark Alon Ohel’s 24th birthday — his second in Hamas captivity.
The crowd at Hostages Square is invited to enjoy hot dogs and warm sangria, Alon’s favorites, says an emcee.
On the stage, a large banner reads: “We know you’re coming back to us alive, to be embraced at home.”
A man wearing the Hostages Families Forum’s shirt sings quiet Hebrew ballads, accompanied by another man on the Square’s outdoor piano. Alon is himself an avid pianist. Later, Israeli pop singer Ivri Lider, who shares a birthday with Ohel, performs.
עברי לידר שר את ״זכיתי לאהוב״ מחובק עם עידית אהל, אמא שלמאלון שמציין היום יום הולדת 24 בשבי חמאס.
אתמול הגיע ממנו אות חיים ראשון, הוא פצוע בעין וכבול בשרשראות כבר 490 יום.
דמעות. pic.twitter.com/oR8acEgrpt— Tal Shorrer (@TalShorrer) February 10, 2025
The event comes a day after Ohel’s family received the first sign of life from him since he was abducted from the Nova music festival on October 7, 2023.
Alon’s mother Idit told Channel 12 last night that returning hostages had reported that her son is being held underground in a Hamas tunnel, bound, starved, and suffering from untreated shrapnel wounds to his shoulder, arm, and now-partially blind eye.
Speaking at Hostages Square, she slams the government for failing to begin talks on the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal, when Alon is slated for release.
She says that after receiving the sign of life from her son, her family was contacted by senior officials the world over, but “there was one government whose representatives didn’t bother to talk with us — the government of Israel.” The crowd jeers.
The sign of life she received is one of “more and more pieces of the puzzle that make up our horrible reality” since her son was abducted on October 7, 2023.
Addressing the government, she says: “How, after the sights you have seen, after the testimonies you have heard, do you let this reality continue?” she asks.
“How did the cabinet not convene yesterday to advance the return of all the next hostages? What are you waiting for, for heavens’ sake?” she continues. “How do we keep hearing, even tonight, empty slogans about ‘total victory’? How do we keep getting heartbreaking news that the next release is delayed?”
In English, she asks US President Donald Trump to “do everything in your power to ensure that this deal continues.”
Addressing her son, Idit Ohel says, “The video we received proves you’re still alive,” though she says she did not really need proof.
“We hear about your great power, your determination,” she says. “Your willingness to help those in need.”
“People ask, where the power to go on comes from,” she says. “I know it comes from you… the boy whose piano is his second home.”
The Times of Israel Community.