Freed Israeli hostage Yarden Bibas marks murdered son's birthday with heartbreaking letter

On what would have been his son Ariel's seventh birthday, former Israeli hostage Yarden Bibas shared an emotional open letter on Wednesday describing the overwhelming grief of life without his wife and two young sons, who were murdered after being abducted by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023.

Bibas, the sole surviving member of his immediate family, made the letter public so Israelis could share in his mourning. His message came as memorial events marking Ariel's birthday were held in communities across Israel, where the fate of the Bibas family has become one of the defining tragedies of the war.

In the letter, Bibas wrote to his eldest son:

“Instead of celebrating your birthday, instead of going with Mom to buy things for your birthday party, I'm sitting here beside you ... In the only place where I feel closest to you. Time isn't doing its thing, and the days aren't becoming any easier. The longing grows stronger day by day, and the feelings of loneliness and absence only intensify.”

“Everything enjoyable feels empty and hollow. In everything I do, I can't help but think about you and how it could have been so much more enjoyable with all of you!” Bibas said.

Continuing to directly address Ariel, he wrote:

“I can't lift you up in your birthday chair, and I also don't get to see you excitedly open all the presents you would have received.”

“But I hope that up in heaven they're lifting you up and celebrating your birthday! I'm sure Mom arranged the most beautiful birthday she could for you, just like we did for you at the kibbutz every year.”

Yarden Bibas, his wife Shiri, and their sons Ariel and Kfir were kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz during the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

Hamas released Yarden Bibas on Feb. 1, 2025, after 484 days in captivity. Upon his release, he learned for the first time that his wife and children had also been taken hostage. His captors had provided him with no information about their fate during his imprisonment.

On Feb. 20, 2025, Hamas transferred three coffins to the International Committee of the Red Cross, which delivered them to Israeli authorities. Israeli forensic experts confirmed that two of the bodies were those of Ariel and Kfir Bibas.

They concluded that the two boys had been murdered by blunt force trauma and that their bodies were later subjected to additional injuries intended to make it appear they had been killed in an Israeli airstrike.

Israeli authorities also determined that the third body was not Shiri Bibas. The following day, Hamas transferred a fourth coffin, and forensic experts confirmed that the remains were those of Shiri Bibas.

The deaths of the Bibas family shocked Israelis and drew international attention, with the images of the red-haired brothers becoming a symbol of the hostage crisis.

Memorial events honoring Ariel Bibas, his family and the remaining hostages, both living and deceased, were held in several Israeli communities on Wednesday.