Posted on 12/05/24
| News Source: Arutz-7
The Braslavski family on Thursday marked at Hostages’ Square in Tel Aviv the birthday of Rom, who is being held captive in Gaza. His younger brother, Ziv, spoke with Arutz Sheva-Israel National News and shared the difficult feelings on this day and spoke about the special bond he has with his older brother.
"Today is my older brother's birthday, and he is a hostage," Ziv began, noting that this is his "second birthday in captivity. He's been in captivity for a year now, unfortunately, along with other hostages. God willing, everyone will return home."
"I feel disappointed in the country for not bringing him back for already a year. It's something I can't comprehend. There's disappointment but maybe also a bit of comfort in knowing that there are people thinking about us and marking this occasion. When I see everyone showing up in honor of Rom, it's very moving," Ziv added.
Describing the unique bond he shares with his older brother, he said, "I know him the best—I shared a room with him. There were things he would only share with me.”
“It's something I deeply miss. Suddenly, he's not here, and it's very hard, and I can't allow myself to get used to it. I imagine him coming back, and it excites me. I constantly dream about his return."
In a month, Ziv will turn 13, but he refuses to celebrate his Bar Mitzvah without his brother. He plans only to mark the occasion out of obligation. "I’m not willing to celebrate. I will go up to the Torah because I must do so on the date of my Bar MItzvah. It’s something that must be done in order to be Jewish and to belong, but we won’t celebrate until he returns. Then, we’ll have a big celebration."
In conclusion, he shared where he finds strength since his brother was kidnapped. "It’s very hard to draw strength during this time, but sometimes I get it from friends or by going out a bit in the evening. I can’t celebrate, something is missing in my heart."