Two years have passed since the horrors of October 7, a day that scarred the Jewish soul and changed Israel forever. It was the darkest day for our people since the Holocaust, when over 1 200 innocent men, women, and children were slaughtered in their homes and at a music festival. Hundreds more were burned, tortured, and mutilated, and 251 were dragged into Gaza’s tunnels of horror. Today, 48 hostages remain in captivity, and only 20 are believed to be alive. Their names, their faces, their suffering haunt us still. We will not forget them. We will not abandon them.
For Israel and for world Jewry, including our South African Jewish community, these two years have been a test of faith, courage, and unity. While we have mourned our dead and prayed for our hostages, we have faced a rising tide of hatred at home, a government that aligns itself with Hamas, a terrorist organisation sworn to our destruction, streets filled with pro-Hamas rallies that glorify murderers, and a media that twists Israel’s pain into propaganda. In the media, Israel’s right to self-defence has been smeared, distorted, and denied.
And yet, we remain.
We remain proud.
We remain strong.
We remain Jewish.
We are proud South African Jews.
We carry both the weight of our grief and the fire of our hope.
We believe in Israel’s right to exist, to defend itself, and to live in peace. We believe in the moral clarity of those who stand with life over death, truth over lies, and civilisation over barbarism.
Even now, as the world awaits news of President Trump’s proposed peace plan, we pray not for false calm but for real peace, peace built on justice, the dismantling of terror, and the safe return of every hostage.
To those who vilify us, you will not silence us.
To those who threaten us, you will not break us.
To those who stand with us, you remind us that light always prevails through the darkness.
The Jewish people have survived Pharaohs, Inquisitions, and pogroms. We have seen empires rise and fall, and we will survive this too.
May the memory of the victims be a blessing.
May the hostages be brought home swiftly.
And may Am Yisrael live, in strength, in faith, and in peace.
