“Is someone hugging you? There is not a day that goes by that we don’t think about you and I promise you that when you return, we will celebrate your birthday with your friends and all the people you love so much” – so wrote the head of the Kfar Saba municipality Rafi Sa’ar, in the moving letter to the boy Ohad Munder Zachary, a resident of Kfar Saba, who was abducted to Gaza and noted His ninth birthday in Hamas captivity in Gaza.
Today, (Monday) the 45th day of the Iron Swords War, the world celebrates International Children’s Day, while dozens of toddlers, children and teenagers are held captive in Gaza, after being brutally kidnapped by the hated Hamas terrorists. Among the children, there is also Ohad Munder-Zachari, a fourth grade student from Kfar Saba, who was kidnapped with his mother, grandparents and who celebrated his ninth birthday while in Hamas captivity.
“Dear fan, today is International Children’s Day, a day when the whole world hugs its children, and I ask, is anyone hugging you now? In a normal world, you would get up this morning, brush your teeth, get dressed and get ready for a day of school at the democratic school in the city, meet your friends, maybe be a little disruptive in class, go wild during recess and come home to your parents who love you so much – on October 7, 2023, your world and ours changed.”
Mayor Rafi Sa’ar also wrote in an emotional letter to a fan boy: “It’s important to me that you know that there isn’t a day that goes by that we don’t think of you. The friends, the teachers, the residents of the city of Kfar Saba, who are already waiting to hug you, that you come back to us healthy, and that we can return to you the smile that was engraved on all of us in the 45 days that you were not with us. You celebrated your 9th birthday when you are not with us, and I promise you that when you come back we will make you a birthday celebration that you will not forget, together with your family and your friends and all the people you love and miss so much.”
The mayor ended his letter by writing: “With you, Ohad, another 39 children are being held captive by Hamas. Every child like this is a whole world, we pray every day that all of you will return to us, to families, friends, to people who love you. We believe that this day is near, but the International Children’s Day that the world celebrates today, we have decided right now that we will not celebrate without you.”
