A family residing in Canada anxiously waits for news about Tiferet Lapidot, their relative whom they fear was abducted during the recent Hamas assault at a music fair in Israel.
Tiferet was amongst the numerous youthful revellers engaged in the Tribe of Nova, a spirited outdoor electronica musical event in Israel’s southern regions. The festivity was abruptly disrupted when Hamas militants breached the border fence, turning their weapons on the festivalgoers and seizing some hostages.
Oran Zlotnik, Tiferet’s cousin situated in Montreal, shares that with each passing day, his family’s desperation expands, in the absence of information on her location.
According to Oran, Tiferet managed to call her mother amidst the chaos, revealing that she was hiding in a shrubbery amidst the gunshots, attempting to keep herself safe before abruptly ending the conversation. Subsequent to her family’s appeal to the Israeli government for assistance in locating her, her phone was traced across the border in Gaza the following day.
Surprisingly, Oran mentioned that the family’s fervent hope that Tiferet might have been taken captive, considering her remains were not found amongst the approximate 250 recovered from the festival grounds post the Hamas assault, a force considered a terrorist entity by the Canadian authorities.
The news has been a hard pill to swallow for the family both in Canada and Israel, especially given that Tuesday marks Tiferet’s 23rd birthday. Harel Lapidot, Tiferet’s uncle, is a Canadian citizen similarly to her father. Instead of partaking in birthday festivities, the family remains ignorant about her wellbeing.
Rather than a joyous occasion, her birthday has transformed into a gloomy day of dread and uncertainty. The only information they possess pertains to the atrocities inflicted by Hamas, ruthlessly preying upon the youthful revelers.
Ohad Lapidot, Tiferet’s father, has released a video, recently, imploring the Canadian government to assist him in his search for his daughter. He claims their constant anxiety deprives them of sleep and appeals to the nation’s leaders to assist him in rescuing his daughter from captivity under Hamas.
In light of this, Melanie Joy, Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister, declares that plans will be made to assist Canadians, including their family members, in leaving Tel Aviv, Israel in the upcoming days. This aid will extend to not only Canadian citizens and their families but also permanent residents of Canada and their dependents.
In related news, another Montreal based household mourns the loss of their 33-year-old son, Alexandre Look, who was slain during the music fair amid the Hamas infiltration. A second Canadian national, Vancouver resident, 22-year-old Ben Mizrachi, was also confirmed as a casualty during the festival attack.
