‘Out of darkness’: Freed hostages lead Hanukkah candle-lightings |
As Israel marked the first night of Hanukkah on Sunday, some of the freed hostages who were released over the past year shared moments from their own celebrations.
At the Western Wall in Jerusalem, Segev Kalfon — who was held hostage in Gaza for 738 days, before being among the last 20 living hostage returned to Israel on October 13 — lit the first candle at the holy site’s central menorah.
“To stand here and say thank you is a gift beyond measure. The first candle symbolizes the small spark that can conquer great darkness. A light that’s small, but real,” Kalfon said.
“When I came out of captivity, the light almost blinded me, the light of people who worried about me and prayed for me, people who didn’t know me but put my name in their heart,” he continued.
“But I stand here for the one who’s still there, for Ran Gvili,” Kalfon went on, naming the last hostage whose body remains in Gaza.
“For him, this light is still burning. For him, we’ll make sure this light doesn’t go out. Our light is the thread that will pull him back........