Oron, Yasmin, Tahir, Tahel and Tal Bira from Kibbutz Be’eri
The remains of five members of the Portuguese-Israeli Bira family were discovered weeks after the October 7 massacre
Kibbutz Be’eri residents Oron Bira, 52, originally from Portugal, and his wife, Yasmin Laura Bira, 51, from Argentina, their young daughters, Tahir, 22, and Tahel, 15, along with Oron’s elder brother, Tal, 62, were all murdered by Hamas during the October 7 massacre that claimed the lives of some 1,200.
In the chaotic aftermath, friends, family, and fellow kibbutz residents clung to hope, speculating that the Biras might have been taken hostage in Gaza. However, nearly two weeks later, news came that the bodies of the five family members were discovered and identified.
The family was laid to rest in a joint ceremony at Moshav Hogla in the Hefer Valley.
The sole survivor from the Bira family was Yahav, the older brother of Tahir and Tahel.
Just a month prior to the attack, Oron and Yasmin had traveled to Portugal to secure their Portuguese passports and apply for their children.
Yasmin’s twin sister, Dalia Fishman, recounted their last conversation. Speaking to the Argentine press, Fishman recalled Yasmin’s WhatsApp message on the morning of the attack, revealing the family was hiding in a bunker as “five terrorists” invaded the kibbutz. Yasmin expressed her fear during that harrowing time.
Unbeknownst to Yasmin at that point, the number of terrorists storming the kibbutz was over 100.
In an interview with Portugal’s SIC Noticias, Tal and Oron’s sister, Batia Bira, compared that day’s terror to the Holocaust. She described the family’s desperate attempt to remain silent and hidden in darkness to avoid detection. Oron had chillingly conveyed to her their dire situation as the terrorists attempted to breach their door.
