A ceremony marking the lighting of the eighth Hanukkah candle was held Sunday night in the city of Rafah in southern Gaza, led by Golani Brigade commander Col. Adi Ganon.
The event was attended by Sgt. (res.) Dana Silverman-Siton, sister of the late Shiri Bibas, who is serving in reserve duty with the Gaza Division (143), alongside additional commanders and soldiers from the division.
At the center of the ceremony stood a menorah from the home of Shiri and Dana’s parents. The menorah was partially burned during the brutal massacre at Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, when Shiri was taken hostage with her two young sons and later murdered in Gaza by Hamas terrorists, and other members of their family were murdered.
Speaking at the ceremony, Dana said: “We are standing here in front of this burned chanukiya - one of the few items that survived the fire in my parents’ home - lighting it together on the soil of Gaza. I look at the glow of these candles and imagine the wind carrying their light and spreading it across the entire Gaza region, so that all who hate us will see it and know that this light cannot be extinguished.”
Col. Ganon said: “At one of the briefings before entering a mission, I climbed into a tank whose targeting sight held the familiar picture of Shiri Bibas. The soldiers told me that in the hardest moments, this is what reminds them why they are here. I say this with deep emotion and great responsibility as a commander in the army: if there is one thing we must all remember, it is the famous image of Shiri embracing her children. Being together and holding one another - that is our strength.”