BALLISTIC BIBI VOWS TO WIN
A young girl held captive by Hamas for more than a month, speaking in only hushed whispers once released, found her voice in Times Square on Saturday as she called for the remaining hostages to be freed.
“I came here today to bring them back home, to let the world know that they have to come home. I know how hard it is there,” Hila Rotem Shoshani (pictured), 13, said softly in Yiddish to the crowd around Father Duffy Square.
Sunday marks the 100th day of captivity for an estimated 132 victims still being held by Hamas.
A crowd of about 40 people — some holding Israeli flags — watched as Hila and relatives of other hostages gathered around an hourglass that was made in Israel to resemble the model in Tel Aviv’s Hostage Square.
The hourglass — which is turned every two hours — was made by a program of troubled youth “to help and support the hostages’ families in their struggle to bring their loved ones back home,” said organizer Shany Granot-Lubaton.
‘Bring them home’
Hila was taken captive from kibbutz Be’eri on Oct. 7 alongside her mother, Raaia, and her friend, 9-year-old Emily Hand.
The girls were released on the second day of the temporary cease-fire in November, while Raaia remains in captivity. Relatives had said the children who were taken spoke quietly once home, as if they were still under the thumbs of the terrorists.
Life with Hamas was “hell,” Hila said Friday, as she spoke at a rally near the UN, according to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
Yair Rotem, Hila’s uncle and Raaia’s brother, also spoke.
“There are more than 100 hostages, people kidnapped that are still in Gaza right now,” he said. “We just need to bring them back home, all of them, right now.”
One of the speakers was Gili Roman, the brother of Yarden Roman Gat, who was held by Hamas for 54 days. His sister-in-law, Carmel Gat, is still a hostage.
Carmel, who is an occupational therapist, reportedly helped guide fellow captives through yoga and meditation, survivors previously said. “Fifty-four days seems like a very long time but now we’re almost double the time since Carmel was taken into Gaza,” Gili told the crowd.