'Israelis were hurting after October 7 - now we want Gaza suffering to end'

In Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square yesterday a sombre air descended upon a usually packed and colourful focal point for Israel’s mourning and prayers for those still being held.

It was a Jewish holiday and there were few people at the square which was unusually silent. The downtown public plaza was so named shortly after the October 7 massacre which triggered the bloody two year conflict in Gaza, an encampment and area for people to gather.

An elderly man solemnly played low-key numbers on his piano, his melodies wafting over the area of flags, photos of the dead and kidnapped - the overall message “bring them home.”

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A makeshift tunnel, like a Hamas tunnel, contains messages on the wall and reminds visitors what some tortured Israeli prisoners are still enduring inside Gaza’s underground network.

This place has in two years been a solemn and dignified area for Israelis, visitors and well-wishers to come together and jointly hope for an end to the bloody fighting. But crucially to get back the remains of those still held in Gaza and to secure the release of the living prisoners, of whom there are thought to be 20 from 48 being held.

In the initial weeks after October 7, 2023, many vowed revenge and violence on the perpetrators, in a human reaction to the dreadful attack Israel had suffered. But out of the ashes of the conflict yesterday there was hope for reconciliation as one couple spoke to me about their views towards Palestinians.

This couple did not want to be identified and did not want their picture taken. Instead they were quietly reflecting on the feeling and the power of this place of gathering. The man told me a relative had barely escaped with his life at the Nova Festival, where young party-goers were slaughtered and injured, some kidnapped.

The young man was injured as he fled for his life and the man told me: “Thankfully he lived and we are constantly grateful for that. This is a place to be thoughtful and reflect on so many feelings. We are drawn to here for that.”

Gathering a breath I asked him and his wife: “Do you mind if I ask if you have thoughts towards Palestinians in Gaza?” Both smiled back at me and the woman told me: “You can ask and I will tell you there was anger in the initial stages after October 7. Israel was hurting. People were angry and vengeful.

“That I believe has changed with time and now I feel we do have feelings towards Palestinians. “It is a process and we want them not to suffer and for the war to end. I cannot speak about the terrorists but I now believe there is a separation and we want peace to come to this region.”

Hostages Square grew from a thought into a memorial to the fallen and kidnapped within days after October 7. It is located close to the Israeli Defence Force HQ in Tel Aviv and the city’s museum.

It has art displays and kiosks selling T-shirts, umbrellas and hoodies with the Bring Them Home Now logo, tents set up for gatherings and discussions and small stages for speeches and presentations. Some tents have representatives of the kibbutz which were attacked and hostages taken from, with surviving members of the kibbutz manning the tents to speak with visitors and press.

Posters of those kidnapped from the kibbutz are hung in the tents as well. An electronic screen was installed as well that counts the number of days, hours, minutes and seconds it has been since the 7 October attacks.

And a specially laid table represents the empty chairs and places left by the kidnapped at their homes throughout Israel and beyond. One day many hope it may become a symbol of human resolve to overcome suffering and eventually move towards reconciliation.

But it is early days and the entire region is awaiting the decision of the Hamas and Israeli negotiators- not least US President Donald Trump.

And this couple in the square have pinned their hopes on him. “You can have your feelings about Donald Trump and question why he is doing this,” the man told me. “But if peace comes from his ambition to win some sort of prize and gain recognition then so be it. The killing and suffering has to stop.”